Russians withdrew 286.4 billion rubles, just under 22 billion kroner, from banks in the first two weeks of August 2026, amid fears the Kremlin could seize deposits to fund the war in Ukraine.
DR reports that the withdrawals are the result of Western sanctions and Ukrainian drone attacks beginning to bite into the Russian economy. The Danish broadcaster cites figures first reported by The Washington Post, which draws on data from the Central Bank of Russia.
Mikkel Rosenvold, a geopolitical analyst at Real Vision, told DR program P1 Morgen that the outflow is a problem for the Russian war effort. Fewer deposits mean Russian banks have less money available to buy government bonds, he said. Per Rosenvold, those bonds have been very hard to sell in recent months because banks doubt the returns match Russian inflation.
Seven months of outflows
As reported by The Telegraph, the first half of August marked the seventh consecutive month of net cash outflows from Russian banks. Cash left the system on nearly every working day, with a peak of 56.8 billion rubles on August 12. The same outlet notes that Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov has dismissed social media claims about deposit raids as fake news.
International Business Times describes the pace of withdrawals as the fastest since the early days of the invasion. According to the outlet, Alexandra Prokopenko, a former adviser to the Russian Central Bank, sees the trend as a loss of trust in the financial system. She considers outright confiscation unlikely, but points to public fear that the government could nationalize deposits.
Rosenvold gave DR a similar explanation for the panic. He said many Russians doubt their money will still be in the bank in six months. The more people withdraw, he said, the greater the risk the state closes off withdrawals entirely, which makes withdrawing the rational choice.
Ukrainian drones have targeted the Russian oil and gas sector and, most recently, warehouses belonging to the online retail giant Wildberries, DR reports. A warehouse in the Moscow region burned after an attack overnight into Sunday. Rosenvold told DR he views the pressure on Russia as a mixture of Ukrainian military responses and Western sanctions.
Russia has struck in the other direction as well. According to DR, Russian attacks have hit warehouses belonging to Rozetka, the Ukrainian equivalent of Wildberries, and the private parcel carrier Nova Poshta. Ukrainian ports and the energy sector have also been repeatedly targeted.
Eciks, summarizing Central Bank statistics, reports that Russians have withdrawn more than 2.4 trillion rubles in cash since the start of 2026.
