Banks in Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan sharply raised fees for accepting cash rubles

Banks in Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan have significantly increased fees for accepting cash Russian rubles from nonresident accounts, according to Russian business news outlet RBC. Fees, which were initially 2-5% at the start of summer, have now risen to 10-15% of the deposited amount at certain banks. Neo Bank Asia in Belarus has even gone as far as charging a flat rate of 20%.

A review of the banks' websites by RBC revealed that at least 10 financial institutions have tightened their terms since the beginning of August.

The surge in fees began in June due to a significant influx of cash from Russia. This increased cash flow was prompted by stricter controls on cash transactions inside Russia. A source from one Belarusian bank told RBC that the rise in cash coming from Russia was a direct result of these stricter controls. Meduza, the news outlet responsible for this story, is dedicated to transparency in its use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom.

The story was written by a human journalist and translated from Russian using an AI model that adheres to strict editorial standards. Every draft is reviewed by a Meduza editor before publication. For any errors found in this translation, readers are encouraged to contact reports@meduza.io. To access Meduza's exclusive English-language content, readers can subscribe to their newsletter.