Russians pull billions from banks, fearing Kremlin will seize deposits for war
Household deposits are falling at nearly all major lenders as Russians convert savings into cash, with about $9.4 billion leaving the banking system in the second quarter.
- Russians are pulling record amounts of money from banks, with nearly $3.4 billion withdrawn in early August, according to The Moscow Times reporting on August 18, 2026.
- Escalating Ukrainian drone strikes and economic instability are sharpening fears that the Kremlin might tap private savings to finance the war, driving this exodus.
- Withdrawals have spread to major institutions; Gazprombank lost 10.77% of household deposits over four months while Rosselkhozbank shed more than 15%, forcing many Russians to store physical cash "under their pillow" for security.
- The Finance Ministry was forced to cancel planned bond issues last month after yields on 10-year government debt surged to around 17 percent, hampering Moscow's ability to finance the war.
- Economic momentum continues to fade, with GDP growth hitting just 0.3 percent, while businesses increasingly move capital through brokerage accounts in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Armenia to escape domestic risks.
18 Articles
18 Articles
The Russian population is apparently afraid that the country's president, Vladimir Putin, will choose to freeze the banks' money. Because at the moment, money is being withdrawn from Russian banks like never before.
Russians Yank Billions From Banks Amid Kremlin Seizure Fears
Nearly $3.4 billion, or 286.4 billion rubles, was withdrawn in the first two weeks of August, following withdrawals of $7.3 billion in July and more than $4.5 billion in June, according to Russian Central Bank data...
Russians Pull $9.4 Billion From Banks as Cash Withdrawal Reaches 2022 Panic Levels
A record flight of household money out of Russia's banks—the sharpest since the opening months of the full-scale war—has now spread to nearly all of the country's largest lenders. The pattern, drawn from bank reporting aggregated by the financial-data service banki.ru, was detailed by The Moscow Times on August 18. We bring you stories from the ground. Your support keeps our team in the field. DONATE NOW Five of the seven banks that hold the la…
Trust in Russia's financial system is dwindling – apparently also domestically. The consequences are hitting an important pillar of state war financing.
Russians Are Pulling Billions From Banks As Fears Grow That Putin Could Seize Deposits to Fund The War
A senior executive at Sberbank, Russia's largest retail bank, warned that withdrawals for all of 2026 could approach twice the amount withdrawn during that first year of the war.
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