OREANDA-NEWS In the banking market of the Russian Federation, after deposits in dirhams of the UAE, a deposit in another exotic currency appeared — Indian rupees (INR). Unlike the deposits in yuan that have already become widespread on the market, deposits in rupees are still single offers. The rupee is not freely convertible, and at the same time, unlike the yuan or the dirham, its exchange rate against the dollar is not too stable. However, against the background of the growth of trade turnover with India, customers have accumulated a lot of balances in this currency, and direct correspondent relations with local banks allow generating earnings that can be shared with customers.

St. Petersburg Social Commercial Bank (PSKB, 96th place by assets) has launched a term deposit in Indian rupees since April 19. The minimum deposit amount is 100 thousand. INR for companies and 10 thousand. INR for citizens. The deposit period is up to 90 days, the rate is 3% per annum.

PSKB started working with the Indian currency in 2016, and in 2022 was one of the first to open direct accounts in INR. "This is a loyal country to us, and we see the growth potential of its economy. Dollars and euros are considered dangerous currencies for the Russian Federation, settlements in them through Russian banks are limited," said Vladimir Pribytkin, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the PSKB.— The trade turnover in rupees is growing, this is also noticeable in the dynamics of the client activity of PSKB." The absolute volumes in the bank are not disclosed.

This week, the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov said that the trade turnover between Russia and India in 2022 exceeded $35 billion, 2.5 times more than the result of 2021. "Against the background of the growth of trade turnover in rupees, customers have accumulated a lot of balances in this currency. We do not proceed from the fact that a new deposit is an extremely profitable commercial offer, but rather a measure to stimulate the preservation of balances in this currency," explained Mr. Pribytkin. The second possible step is, according to him, the launch of loans in rupees. He gives an example of an analogy with the yuan: "Given the fact that many have turnover in Chinese yuan, customers are happy to leave the yuan in deposits, and sometimes take a loan in this currency."