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SUMMARY
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1. THIS REPORT ADDRESSES INTERNATIONAL MONEY TRANSFERS TO AND FROM RUSSIA, INCLUDING COMPANY AND INDIVIDUAL MONEY TRANSFERS. THE INFORMATION FOR THIS REPORT WAS OBTAINED FROM DIRECT INTERVIEWS WITH BANK REPRESENTATIVES. END SUMMARY.
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WIRE TRANSFERS: COMPANIES
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TRANSFERRING MONEY ABROAD:
2. MOST BANKS OPERATING IN RUSSIA WILL MAKE A WIRE TRANSFER ONLY FOR THEIR CLIENTS. MOREOVER, MANY BANKS WILL NOT EXECUTE A TRANSFER UNLESS A CLIENT IS A JURIDICAL PERSON, I.E. AN ENTITY. IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE CENTRAL BANK INSTRUCTION #39, A COMMERCIAL CLIENT SHOULD SUBMIT A CONTRACT, INVOICE, AND CUSTOMS DECLARATION TO A BANK TO JUSTIFY THE LEGITIMACY OF A TRANSFER. MOST BANKS ADHERE TO THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD OF TWO ADHERE TO THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD OF TWO WORKING DAYS FOR A WIRE TRANSFER COMPLETION. THE SERVICE CHARGES VARY FROM BANK TO BANK BUT ARE COMPETITIVE. FOR EXAMPLE, BANK MENATEP WILL CHARGE USD 46 FOR A TRANSFER REGARDLESS OF ITS AMOUNT. FRENCH BANK CREDIT LYONNAIS CHARGES A CURRENCY CONVERSION FEE THAT VARIES FROM 0.3 TO 1 PERCENT PLUS FLEXIBLE FEE FOR A TRANSFER ITSELF. DIALOG BANK CLIENTS PAY A FEE OF 0.1 PERCENT OF THE TRANSFER AMOUNT BUT NOT EXCEEDING USD 100. INKOMBANK ASSESSES A USD 10 FIXED SERVICE CHARGE PLUS 0.2 PERCENT OF THE TRANSFER AMOUNT BUT NOT EXCEEDING USD 50. BANKS TRANSFER THE MONEY THROUGH THEIR CORRESPONDENT ACCOUNTS WITH FOREIGN BANKS. INKOMBANK HAS CORRESPONDENT ACCOUNTS WITH FOUR U.S. BANKS: THE BANK OF NEW YORK, REPUBLIC NATIONAL BANK, BANKING TRUST COMPANY, AND BANK OF AMERICA. DIALOG BANK MOST FREQUENTLY USES ITS CORRESPONDENT ACCOUNT WITH THE BANK OF NEW YORK. THE DEPUTY HEAD OF THE INKOMBANK'S CORRESPONDENT RELATIONSHIPS DEPARTMENT, ELENASOKOLOVA, NOTED THAT THE BANK'S CLIENTS RARELY HAVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH THEIR MONEY TRANSFERS. SHOULD ANY OCCUR, THE MATTER IS TRANSFERRED TO A INVESTIGATION DEPARTMENT THAT SPECIALIZES IN FINDING LOST TRANSFERS. SIMILAR SERVICES ARE OFFERED BY DIALOG BANK.
RECEIVING MONEY FROM ABROAD:
3. A RESIDENT COMPANY RECEIVES MONEY WIRED FROM ABROAD INTO A TRANSIT ACCOUNT,
WHERE THE MONEY IS KEPT FOR UP TO 14 DAYS. WITHIN THIS PERIOD, A COMPANY SHOULD
PROVIDE THE BANK WITH A LEGAL DOCUMENT (A CONTRACT, INVOICE, ETC.) PROVING
THAT A COMPANY IS ENTITLED TO THE TRANSFERRED MONEY, AFTER WHICH A FIRM IS
OBLIGATED TO CONVERT 50 PERCENT OF THE AMOUNT INTO RUBLES ACCORDING TO A CENTRAL
BANK REGULATION. IF THE MONEY IS RECEIVED AS A "CAPITAL TRANSACTION" (FOR
INSTANCE, A CONTRIBUTION TO A CHARTERED CAPITAL), THE COMPANY SHOULD PRESENT
A SPECIAL CENTRAL BANK
AUTHORIZATION. IF A COMPANY FAILS TO JUSTIFY MONEY RECEIVED, A BANK HAS TO
SEND IT BACK OR NOTIFY THE CENTRAL BANK OF THE TRANSACTION. MONEY TRANSFERS
INTO NON-RESIDENT COMPANIES' ACCOUNTS
ARE NOT CLOSELY MONITORED.
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WIRE TRANSFERS: INDIVIDUALS
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TRANSFERRING MONEY ABROAD:
4. CENTRAL BANK INSTRUCTION #39 MADE IT VIRTUALLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR INDIVIDUALS
TO WIRE MONEY ABROAD. THE INSTANCES WHEN THE TRANSFERS ARE ALLOWED ARE LIMITED
TO A SPECIFIED LIST OF EVENTS (FOR EXAMPLE,PAYMENTS FOR SUBSCRIPTIONS FOR
FOREIGN PRESS, PAYM
ENTS FOR MEDICAL SERVICES OBTAINED
ABROAD, ETC.) SERGEY GUSKOV, SENIOR SPECIALIST WITH INKOMBANK, SAYS THAT MANY
CLIENTS USE THE FOLLOWING MECHANISM TO REPATRIATE THEIR MONEY: DEPOSIT MONEY
INTO THEIR VISA OR MASTERCARD ACCOUNT WITH INKOMBANK; AND WHEN ABROAD, USE
A MONEY MACHINE TO ACCESS FUNDS (WHICH OF COURSE, REQUIRES A HIGH CASH ADVANCE
COMMISSION.)
RECEIVING MONEY FROM ABROAD:
5. THE SITUATION IS COMPLETELY DIFFERENT FOR RECEIVING MONEY FROM ABROAD. THERE ARE NO RESTRICTIONS ON THESE TRANSACTIONS. AN INDIVIDUAL CAN OPEN A DEMAND ACCOUNT WITH A USD 200 MINIMUM BALANCE AND RECEIVE ANY AMOUNT FROM ANY COUNTRY IN THE WORLD. IT IS EVEN POSSIBLE TO SEND MONEY TO A PERSON'S NAME, MERELY USING A BANK'S ROUTING NUMBER TO SEND THE MONEY. A RECIPIENT WILL BE ABLE TO RETRIEVE THE TRANSFERRED FUNDS FROM A BANK AFTER PRESENTING A PASSPORT.
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WESTERN UNION
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6. FOR INDIVIDUALS, PERHAPS THE EASIEST WAY TO TRANSFER MONEY ABROAD IS THROUGH THE MANY OFFICES OF WESTERN UNION. A NUMBER OF RUSSIAN BANKS ARE AFFILIATED WITH WESTERN UNION, WHICH EXPLAINS THE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS AND TERMS OF TRANSFERS AT DIFFERENT OFFICES. ALL CHARGE A STEEP COMMISSION. TO ILLUSTRATE: A CUSTOMER WILL HAVE TO PAY A USD 90 SERVICE CHARGE TO TRANSFER USD 1,500 ABROAD. THERE ARE NO RESTRICTIONS ON RECEIVING MONEY ONCE A CLIENT PRESENTS A PASSPORT AND 10-DIGIT CONFIRMATION NUMBER. TO SEND MONEY ABROAD, A NON-RESIDENT SHOULD PRESENT A CUSTOMS DECLARATION. THE AMOUNT OF THE TRANSFER SHOULD NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT STATED ON THE CUSTOMS DECLARATION. BANKS USUALLY IMPOSE DAILY LIMITS. A TRANSFERRED AMOUNT SHOULD NOT EXCEED USD 6,000 A DAY AT THE WESTERN UNION OFFICES AT THE ROSSIYSKIY CREDIT BANK. MPI BANK'S DAILY LIMIT IS USD 20,000. RESIDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO PRESENT A LEGAL INVOICE OR A CENTRAL BANK AUTHORIZATION TO HAVE MONEY WIRED.
Excerpt from earlier cable, regarding Russian forex:
THE EDGES OF THE NEW BAND (Ruble to Dollar) ARE SET AT R5,500- R6,100/USD ON JANUARY FIRST, SLIDING TO R5750- R6350/USD BY THE END OF 1997. WHILE THE WIDTH OF THE CORRIDOR REMAINS CONSTANT AT R6O0, THE SLOPE OF THE CORRIDOR WAS LOWERED IN LINE WITH INFLATION ESTIMATES FOR 1997. DUBININ EXPLAINED THAT THE AVERAGE LINE OF THE CORRIDOR'S INCLINATION REPRESENTS A 9 PERCENT DEPRECIATION OF THE RUBLE OVER THE COURSE OF THE YEAR, BASED ON AN 11.8 PERCENT ANNUAL INFLATION ESTIMATE FOR RUSSIA AND A 2.9 PERCENT INFLATION ESTIMATE FOR THE U.S. ACCORDING TO DUBININ, MONTHLY DEVALUATIONS WOULD BE BETWEEN 0.3 AND 1.1 PERCENT. DAILY FLUCTUATIONS WILL BE LIMITED TO 0.75 PERCENT ON EITHER SIDE OF A CENTRAL RATE, SIMILAR TO CURRENT CBR PRACTICE.