Large banks freeze around 300,000 transfers monthly; 60% of clients avoid fraudsters during this time - Nabiullina
MOSCOW. Feb 19 (Interfax) - Large credit institutions impose a two-day cooling-off period on around 300,000 transfers each month to accounts listed in the Central Bank of Russia's database of fraudulent transactions and attempted fraud, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina said during the Cybersecurity in Finance forum.
Since July 25 of last year, banks have been required to suspend transfers for two days if the recipient appears in the CBR's database of unauthorized transactions. If a bank completes such a transfer before the cooling-off period ends, it must refund the client within 30 days.
"Each month, large banks cool, which means they suspend for two days, around 300,000 transfers per month to accounts from the Central Bank's database. Some people still go through with these transactions once the period ends, but the majority, about 60%, realize within two days that they could have fallen victim to fraud," Nabiullina said.
"Among the remaining 40%, some transactions involve cryptocurrencies processed through droppers - people who help fraudsters withdraw and cash out stolen funds - deliberately, and this also requires attention," she said.
The regulator's database of unauthorized transfers is compiled based on information from banks and payment system operators. If a client reports fraud, details about the recipient (such as an account number or other credentials) are entered into the Central Bank's database.
"Banks have practically stopped transferring money to accounts from our list of suspicious accounts without a cooling-off period. These accounts are effectively no longer in use. We see that transaction activity on them drops 40 times after they are added to the database," she said.
"Also, payment cards and online banking accounts belonging to droppers, whose details are shared with us by the Internal Affairs Ministry, are blocked by banks 100% of the time. As a result, these cards and other electronic payment methods effectively become single-use tools for droppers," Nabiullina said.
Due to rising costs, fraudsters have increasingly turned to cashing out stolen funds via couriers, she said.
The Central Bank supports the idea of introducing criminal liability for droppers, she said.
Following a Q&A session, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the Central Bank and the government to amend legislation to strengthen banks' responsibility in relation to citizens whose funds were stolen by fraudsters, including by using social engineering methods. The deadline for implementation is July 15, 2025. The president also tasked the Central Bank together with the Federal Security Service, the Internal Affairs Ministry, the Federal Financing Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring), the Prosecutor General's Office and the Investigative Committee with drafting proposals to combat droppers.
