The tension between the head of the Russian Central Bank Elwira Nabi3lina and the Kremlin led to the institution's audit – says the American think tank Institute of War Studies (ISW). He adds that the reason is high interest rates.
The purpose of the audit of the accounting chamber is to be to examine the monetary policy conducted by the Central Bank in 2022-2024 and the impact of interest rates on inflationbudget expenditure and investments.
The unconfirmed source, which ISW referred to, assessed that the audit is an attack on Nabi3lin. Was supposed to lead to him A group of lobbyists from large Russian companies who strive to lower interest rates.
The Kremlin presses the central bank
Inflation is growing due to Russian aggression on Ukraine. In December last year, the Central Bank maintained a reference interest rate of 21 percent. High interest rates stop the increase in inflation. In recent months, the Kremlin has claimed that inflation is 9-10 percent, but ISW said that it was probably closer to the 20-25 percent range.
According to analysts, the Kremlin probably exerted a central pressure to keep the interest rate unchanged, while he should have raised it.
ISW noticed that The Kremlin tried to blame the growing inflation on the central bank, Especially for his president. This was probably aimed at distracting the anger of Russian business from Vladimir Putin And directed him to Nabi3lina, which, however, was not able to pursue a completely independent monetary policy.
The audit can be an element of exerting further pressure on the bank, which is to prevent further interest rate increases. This would “manage the expectations and frustrations of” Russian businessmen and support the Kremlin narrative on economic stability Russia – ISW assessed.
Source of the main photo: PAP/EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV