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catch: for most of them, cross-border transfers in foreign currency are actually paused, this can only be understood as a result of communication with support. Among the banks that still provide such a service are Gazprombank (commission 3%, minimum 30 thousand rubles, maximum 60 thousand) or the Chinese Bank of China (0.3% within the network and above - to other banks).
But SWIFT transfers from Russian banks have one big problem: from time to time they freeze and get lost. To make a payment, users may separately need documents confirming the origin of funds - and these documents, most likely, will have to be provided by the user.
Gazprombank offers SWIFT transfer services, but the cross-border transfers in foreign currency have been paused. The Bank of China still provides such services, but only to a limited set of countries that do not include 'unfriendly' ones. However, SWIFT transfers from Russian banks have a significant problem in that they freeze and get lost from time to time.
Ruble transfers: cheaper, but longer.
Another working way to transfer money abroad through banks is ruble transfers, say financial consultants The Bell spoke with. And this method is quite popular.
In a “friendly” country, a bank account is opened in a bank that accepts ruble transfers. A popular location for such a scheme is Kazakhstan. Firstly, because you can open an account there remotely: it will take about two months and up to 60 thousand rubles for the services of an intermediary.
On the local exchange users can exchange rubles for foreign currency at a more or less good rate. Armenia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and other countries where you can send a transfer in rubles are also suitable for this method. Rubles are sent there, which are then exchanged for dollars and sent further from a foreign account using SWIFT.
For example, in Freedom Bank, this is a Kazakh bank brokered by Freedom Finance, you can open an account with a Russian SIM card and get a multi-currency account, where there will be both rubles and dollars with euros.
But much more documents will be required: since you will have to report to the Federal Tax Service for opening an account and the movement of funds on it (if the amount of transfers exceeds 600 thousand rubles per year).
Cryptocurrencies: risky and problematic
Transfers using cryptocurrencies are still a popular way to withdraw money from Russia. However, even here the opportunities are becoming less and less.
Binance, the most popular crypto exchange in the world, banned Russians from buying and selling dollars and euros through its p2p service in the middle of March. This means that the scheme of buying dollars for rubles, and then sell stablecoins for dollars or euros and withdraw money to a foreign account, will no longer work.
30 RUSSIA Country Report Russia April 2023 www.intellinews.com