Russia's Central Bank said Wednesday the amount of money being spirited abroad in shadowy transactions was falling, in a sign its campaign to clean up the banking sector may be yielding results.
The Central Bank launched a crackdown on money laundering and risky operations in the banking sector last year and has since revoked the licenses of dozens of banks.
"Going by the results of the first quarter of 2014, we see a dynamic reduction in these operations," Dmitry Skobelkin, deputy chairman of the Central Bank, told lawmakers at a meeting of the State Duma's financial committee.
Some $26 billion was taken out of Russia in suspect transactions in 2013, as opposed to $39 billion a year earlier, Skobelkin said, adding that 1.7 trillion rubles ($50 billion) was illegally converted into cash in 2013 as opposed to 2.6 trillion rubles in 2012.
The Central Bank monitors suspect transactions by reviewing banks' financial statements and data from Russia's Federal Financial Monitoring Service.
Skobelkin also said the amount of money leaving Russia in so-called "Belarussian-Kazakh" schemes — in which Russian money is transferred to offshore accounts for fictitious deliveries from former Soviet republics — fell to $100 million in the first quarter from $21.8 billion for the whole of last year.
"The main contraction happened starting from the third quarter of last year, when the Central Bank took decisive measures to intercept these schemes," Skobelkin said.
See also:
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
![paiment methods](https://static.themoscowtimes.com/img/contribute/payment_icons.png)
Remind me later.