The head of the Central Bank told the President about the completion of the first stage of the bank deposit insurance system, which now includes 827 credit institutions. Another 260 banks have expressed their desire to join the system during the second stage, which should be completed by September.
Sergei Ignatyev stressed that the deposit insurance system would increase the stability of credit institutions, as, prior to joining the system, banks had to correct their financial situations and accounting indices. When answering a question from the president, the Central Bank chairman said that the establishment of the insurance system in the banking sector had not divided banks into first-rate and second-rate institutions. He also informed the President about the situation on the foreign currency market and the inflation rates. Mr Ignatyev said that this year the Central Bank would make efforts to prevent a sharp rise in the ruble’s exchange rate and expressed the hope that the inflation rate would fall in the coming months and stabilise by the end of the year.