August 18, 2026

Rubles Will Cost You Extra


Rubles Will Cost You Extra
Prepare to pay a premium. The Russian Life files.

On August 14, the news site RBK reported that banks in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Belarus have increased by up to 15% their commission on non-residents' deposits enumerated in rubles. According to the publication, the restrictions were imposed after a sudden influx of Russian currency into non-resident accounts.

Banks in the three Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) countries began charging the ruble deposit fees, ranging from 2-5 percent, in June. 

But since the beginning of this month, RBK noticed that banks in the EAEU had hardened their policies on ruble deposits, hiking their rates to 10 and 15 percent. In Belarus' Neo Bank Azia, for instance, there is currently a 20 percent fee for such transactions in rubles.

The banks cited an excess of ruble liquidity as the reason for the imposition of new, higher commissions. A source from a Belarusian bank told RBK that the increase in the flow of rubles into EAEU countries may be due to new controls on transactions in the financial system in Russia.

Meanwhile, unlike other banks, Freedom Bank Kazakhstan decreased its commission rate from 5 to 2.5 percent.

 

 

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