The Daily Populous Wednesday May 20th, 2026 night edition
Authored by themoscowtimes.com and submitted by neonpurplestar

Russia’s households pulled money from fixed-term bank deposits for the first time since the panic triggered by the Kremlin’s 2022 mobilization drive, as falling interest rates prompted some savers to shift cash into bonds, big-ticket purchases and cash holdings.

Funds held in Russians’ fixed-term deposits fell by 288 billion rubles ($3.97 billion) in March, the RBC news website calculated based on banking data, marking the first monthly outflow from term deposits since October 2022.

The decline came as deposit rates eased from recent highs and consumers increasingly sought alternatives for their savings.

The withdrawals signal that lower borrowing costs and slowing returns on deposits are beginning to reshape Russian household behavior after two years of unusually high interest rates that fueled record savings levels.

Economists say some funds are now being redirected toward investment products while others are flowing into consumer spending, particularly on durable goods — a shift authorities hope could support economic activity.

The Central Bank said Russians’ total bank holdings rose only 0.3% in March, and solely because of growth in current account balances. Longer-term deposits, particularly those with maturities of more than one year, recorded the sharpest declines.

Analysts cited several factors behind the shift. Falling deposit rates reduced the appeal of fixed-term savings products, encouraging households either to seek higher-yielding financial assets or spend on expensive goods. Demand for cash also rose amid internet outages and disruptions to cashless payment systems.

Car sales rose 30.6% year-on-year in March and a further 15.1% in April after declining in January and February. Cash in circulation held by Russians increased by 0.3 trillion rubles ($4.14 billion) in March and another 0.6 trillion rubles ($8.28 billion) in April.

Most household savings in Russia remain concentrated in deposits. Of the 67.4 trillion rubles ($930.1 billion) Russians held in banks as of April 1, some 46.9 trillion rubles ($647.2 billion) sat in fixed-term accounts, according to Central Bank data.

DDoubleDDog on May 19th, 2026 at 16:40 UTC »

Russians better get their money out as soon as possible before the government shuts down the banks and takes all the money to fund the war. The last ones to the bank lose their life savings. It's now or never.

BillButtlickerII on May 19th, 2026 at 16:37 UTC »

Russians making runs on their own banks. Their economy is in total free fall.

2EscapedCapybaras on May 19th, 2026 at 16:22 UTC »

Didn't the Russian Central Bank say last month they might have to take people's deposits to keep the country running and give them the equivalent of promissory notes for when things stabilize? I would have taken every rubble I had out of the bank if I heard that shit.