Duma deputy proposes ban on foreign currency transactions
A member of the State Duma from the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), Ivan Sukharev, has proposed prohibiting any foreign currency transactions within the territory of Russia. In his opinion, this will help to strengthen the Russian Ruble, according to the newspaper Izvestia.
The MP has already prepared the bill indicating which foreign currency transactions (both cash and non-cash) will be banned for residents within the territory of Russia. Sukharev proposes to ban payments in foreign currency, the creation or payment of debts in foreign currency as well as the keeping of foreign currency in accounts. He also wants to prohibit the sale and purchase of foreign currency.
The MP said that "many countries in Asia and Africa" have also introduced such restrictions. Sukharev noted that the most popular currencies in Russia are the Dollar and the Euro. The countries with such currencies have imposed sanctions against Russia. The MP intends to ban the circulation of this currency. Such measures will add to the list of retaliatory sanctions by the Russian Federation.
Today, the Central Bank of Russia has tightened the rules governing foreign currency exchange for amounts exceeding 15,000 Rubles (just over $200). These currency transactions will only be conducted with full disclosure by the customer. The customer will be required to show their passport and complete a questionnaire.
The Ruble is continuing to fall for the second year largely due to lower oil prices. On December 28, 2015, during the course of trading on the Moscow Exchange, the US Dollar rate rose above 72 Rubles for the first time since December 2014.