Abstract:
Russia's isolation from global financial markets and government programmes to support bank lending initially fuelled a wartime lending boom in Russia. With economic growth now stalled and borrowing costs rising, lending growth has slowed. This shift, in conjunction with increased public sector borrowing needs, has raised worries about the quality of banking sector's loan portfolios, especially with respect to corporate lending. We examine available official banking statistics to assess the ability of Russia's banking sector to digest mounting government debt.
