Page 108 - RusRPTOct22

authorities have shown strong willingness to support mortgages and keep interest rates low despite the sanctions, so far mortgage issuance remains stalled.
8.1.8 Sberbank news
Sberbank has stopped using the regulatory ease provided by the central bank, and expects to have good financials in July–December, CEO German Gref said on September 7.
"Everything is going on in accordance with the plan. We indeed forecast positive financial results in the second half of the year, we have started on a positive track," Gref said.
"The fact that we have stopped using the regulatory ease which the central bank provided to us is a good sign. Whereas we needed it in the first months for well-known reasons, we have stopped using any of the provided incentives now for regulatory accounting." Gref confirmed that the bank had solved all problems on its own and does not need capital injection from the state.
The official added that the losses of Russian banks at large fell significantly in July–December as compared to the RUB1.5 trillion in January–June, but the 2022 results will be negative.
Gref separately said that Sberbank has no plans to open more outlets abroad.
8.1.8 Bank news
Turkey’s Istanbul-listed Isbank (ISCTR) has suspended clients’ use of bank cards issued by Russia’s domestic payments system Mir until clarity on US sanction threats is established, the bank told news services on September 19. Also on September 19, a correspondent of Russian news service TASS confirmed that he could not withdraw Turkish lira cash from an Isbank ATM with his Mir card. On September 15, Russian media reported that some hotels in Turkey had stopped accepting Russian credit cards that link to the Mir system. Also on that day, some unnamed US officials told the Financial Times that the US was focusing on Turkish banks that have integrated into Mir. On September 13, the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned the chairman of Mir and served a warning on the heightened risk of facilitating Russia’s efforts to evade Ukraine war sanctions through the expanded use of the National Payment Card System (NSPK) or the Mir National Payment System. Isbank told Bloomberg that it had seen the US Treasury’s statement on the issue and was evaluating it.
Three Turkish state banks plan to exit Russia’s Mir payments system
108 RUSSIA Country Report October 2022 www.intellinews.com