According to the U.S. Treasury Department, Sberbank is exceptionally important to the Russian economy because it accounts for one-third of all Russian banking assets. Meanwhile, he is one of the first to be subject to sanctions.
Less than two weeks after Vladimir Putin’s country attacked Ukraine, the European Union struck a deal with the United States, Great Britain, Canada and Japan to cut it off from the international SWIFT system. As a result, he lost the ability to settle transactions between banks. By 2023, Sberbank recorded 80 percent. A decline in profits.
Since the imposition of economic sanctions, the regime of the Russian president has been looking for a way to introduce new currencies to settlements. He found it in Brazil, which did not join the economic sanctions introduced by other countries. According to the Brazilian report, the meeting with representatives of the Russian bank took place over the summer at the headquarters of Sudeco, the central government agency that handles economic development projects. Representatives from Banco do Brasil – Latin America’s largest financial institution and state-owned Caixa Economica Federal – were also present.
In a statement released after the meeting, Sudeco assured that the agreement with the Russian bank “strengthens the relations between Brazil and Russia, which are part of the only international group for economic cooperation and development that is increasingly popular in the world.” This is about the BRICS, which, until recently, included India, China and South Africa in addition to Russia and Brazil. In August, additional countries joined: Ethiopia, Iran and Argentina.
A memorandum of understanding was signed at the end of the meeting and access to the Brazilian portal showed that Sberbank will open correspondent accounts in yuan in local banks. They are used to carry out transactions with other countries. This information was confirmed by the Russian newspaper Kommersant. “Direct correspondence relationships will allow us to optimize payment processing costs in the context of growing foreign trade transactions between countries,” he reports. Brazilian media reports that Sberbank is ready to support local investments.
Both left and right in Brazil refrained from condemning Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro argued for the country’s stance, recalling local farmers’ dependence on Russian mineral fertilizers. The current government, Luiz Ignacio Lula da Silva, avoids alliances with Western powers, especially the United States.
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