ТАСС/TASS. The Russian banking system has had very big problems related to rouble devaluation and the sanctions. This is what Sberbank deputy management board chairwoman Bella Zlatkis said to describe how things are in the banking sector.
"There's hardly any man who can say that everything is OK in the banking sector. The Russian banking system has had hard times due to both rouble devaluation and the sanctions. If two or three banks in Russia shut up shop every week, if this number grows by dozens year after year, if dozen banks face capital and liquidity problems, I assume that this banking system can hardly be called sound," she told journalists.
Sberbank also does not rule out the possibility of offering federal loan bonds (OFZs) to households, but this issue has not yet been settled, Zlatkis said.
"Sberbank partakes in all OFZ auctions and in all decisions related to OFZs. And I think that it will back (the placement of retail OFZ – editorial note). For the time being, it's difficult for me to say what infrastructure (of this placement) will be as there is a conflict of interest here. So far, I am not inclined to say firmly how things will be," she pointed out.
Zlatkis thinks that special securities for the public, especially in the conditions of volatility, should be offered cautiously. "Government securities worldwide are a saving tool for the most conservative households. This is quite possible. In Russia, this is rather a tool for all mutual funds (insurance, pension)," she believes.
