Central Bank of Russia to raise risk buffer for increase in debt of large companies starting Dec 1

MOSCOW. Dec 1 (Interfax) - The Central Bank of Russia is raising the risk buffer for the increase in the debt of large companies from 20% to 40% in order to accelerate the accumulation of banks' macro-prudential capital buffers.

The Central Bank said that companies with high debt burdens are increasing borrowings faster than the market overall, thus necessitating the tightening of macro-prudential regulation measures implemented in the spring.

The Central Bank in February this year implemented a 20% macro-prudential buffer on the risk ratio for growth in banks' loan claims against large companies with high debt burdens. The buffer has been in effect since the beginning of the second quarter. Banks formed a macro-prudential capital buffer for growth in loan claims on these companies totaling 17 billion rubles from April to September. Debt totaling 2.1 trillion rubles was subject to the buffer, the Central Bank said.

Moreover, the largest corporate groups with high debt burdens increased debt obligations to banks faster at 10.2% than the corporate sector overall at 6.5% in 9M 2025, the Central Bank said.

A 40% buffer should not significantly burden banks' capital and should not substantially affect overall lending dynamics. However, an increased buffer should motivate banks to assess more carefully the risks of companies with increased debt burdens, the Central Bank said.