At Moscow on January 17th, Sberbank, Russia's largest lender, announced a record annual profit of 1.56 trillion rubles ($15.22 billion) for 2024, supported by robust growth in corporate borrowing and a year-end interest rate of 21%. The previous year, Sberbank recorded a profit of 1.5 trillion rubles in 2023, marking a more than fivefold increase from the year before. As per Russian accounting standards, the bank's profits for 2024 rose by 4.6% compared to the previous year, with a return on equity of 23.4%. The central bank's stringent monetary policies, which have elevated interest rates, have played a role in slowing down lending activities. Sberbank's CEO, German Gref, noted that in December, due to the central bank's policies and regulatory changes, there was a slight decrease in both retail and corporate portfolios for the first time since 2022, by 0.1%.
(1 USD = 102.50 RUB)