Russian Central Bank drafting amendments on opening branches of foreign banks in Russia - CBR deputy governor

ST. PETERSBURG. May 12 (Interfax) - A bill permitting foreign banks to open branches in Russia is under development and could appear in the public domain in the near future, Russian Central Bank Deputy Governor Alexei Guznov told reporters.

"Work is underway, taking into account the fact that there is a model that allows insurance companies to do this; this is one approach. There are other proposals. I hope that we will also have a public discussion in the near future," Guznov said on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum.

"Many countries have shown interest, first of all, our traditional partners within both the BRICS and within the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Interest at the level of words is one thing, though what will the actions be. Our task is to create an optimal legal environment," Guznov added.

The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) supports the idea of opening branches of foreign banks in Russia, though with a limited range of operations, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina said in February, explaining that this namely means opening branches that would carry out operations for settlements and payments, without attracting deposits from the population.