CBR may resume unsecured loan program
MOSCOW. Nov 2 (Interfax) - The Central Bank of Russia may resume its unsecured loan program if is a large and fast growing liquidity deficit, Central Bank Deputy Chairman Alexei Simanovsky told the press Wednesday.
"If the deficit is formed very quickly (...) and this deficit cannot be covered with conventional standard refinancing instruments [then the Central Bank may start offering unsecured loans]," he said.
The Central Bank can offer Russian banks around 1 trillion rubles with its conventional refinancing instruments, Simanovsky said. Standard instruments require a longer time for obtaining liquidity than unsecured loans, he added.
"The matter also concerns the speed at which the [liquidity] deficit is formed," he said. Domestic and external factors can influence the speed at which the deficit is formed, such as the global economic situation, he added. Budget policy can also have an impact on the liquidity deficit. It is up to the Central Bank to be ready for any turn of events, he said.
The Central Bank has started reviewing general agreements with credit organizations. The possibility of resuming the unsecured loan program "cannot be hypothetically excluded," that is why general agreements are being reviewed, he said.
The general agreements are unlikely to differ much in content, but the terms for offering unsecured loans may vary, he said.
"A decision has been made to conclude general agreements with banks. The Central Bank is not considering this issue in a specific context [of resuming unsecured loans]," he said. However, the Central Bank does not rule out the possibility of resuming this program, he said.