Putin’s Rainy-Day Fund Prospering as Cash Hoard Balloons
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The ruble’s collapse is giving President Vladimir Putin a way out of having to sell bonds to raise financing for Russia.
The 13 percent plunge against the dollar last month swelled Russia’s Reserve Fund by 919 billion rubles ($14 billion), almost six times what the Finance Ministry borrowed on local debt markets last year, official data show. The windfall means there’s less urgency to sell the securities, known as OFZs, amid yields that have climbed as high as 18.56 percent for five-year notes.