Russia Forex Interventions

Latest figures

The latest release, for NOV, was published on 5 November 2026 and came in at RUB312.6B.

See it in the economic calendar →

Why it matters

Reserves are the war chest a central bank uses to defend its currency. Falling reserves can mean the bank is selling foreign currency to support the Russian rouble; rising reserves can mean it is buying to hold it down. For pegged and emerging-market currencies they are a key measure of resilience.

How it is calculated

The central bank values its holdings at market prices and exchange rates at the end of the period; changes therefore include valuation effects as well as purchases and sales.

What changes mean

• A large unexpected drop may signal intervention to support the currency.
• A rise driven only by a weaker dollar (valuation) says little about policy.
• Compare with months of imports covered: three months is a common minimum for emerging markets.

A short history

The modern reserve system grew out of Bretton Woods (1944); after the Asian crisis of 1997–98 many emerging economies built large reserves to avoid running out of foreign currency again.

Questions