Slide in ruble nets $2.2 billion in May

Posted on Jun 30, 2012 in Business | 0 comments

Russian banks made 62 percent of their profits in May by betting against the ruble, an economic analyst said Friday.

Dmitry Miroshnichenko of the Higher School of Economics’ Development Center said Russian banks including Sberbank, VTB and Gazprombank re-purchased rubles at the end of May, netting a profit of $2.2 billion in the process.

The banks had begun buying foreign currencies in early 2011, The Moscow Times reported Friday.

Banks took their cue to sell with the ruble falling 12.1 percent against the dollar and 4.9 percent against the euro in May.

Sberbank, Gazprombank and Alfa Bank earned the most on the currency deal, making profits of $311 million, $305 million and $243 million, respectively, the report said.

Copyright 2012 by United Press International