MOSCOW, January 12 Russian billionaire and businessman Oleg Deripaska in his Telegram channel called the plans of the Russian Ministry of Finance to place government bonds denominated in Chinese currency the correct strategy.
“A very correct strategy: start forming debt market benchmarks in yuan,” Deripaska wrote, commenting on the plans of the Russian Ministry of Finance to place federal loan bonds (OFZ) in yuan.
«»Yes, it will not be easy. It is necessary to explain to the partner not only profitability, but also reliability. But this will open the way for Russian companies to reduce the cost of debt. Today this (high cost of credit) is the most important obstacle to prosperity and economic Russia's growth,» he added.
The Russian Ministry of Finance continues to work on the placement of OFZs in yuan — it expects support for this initiative from Chinese partners, Denis Mamonov, director of the department of public debt and public financial assets of the ministry, said on Thursday.
The issue of issuing OFZs in yuan has been discussed for quite a long time. For the first time, the Russian Ministry of Finance announced its intention to place federal loan bonds in yuan in 2015. Then it was planned to place securities worth $1 billion in equivalent and only for Chinese investors.