OREANDA-NEWS. The chairman of the Board of VTB Bank, Andrey Kostin said in an interview with RBC that the Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance of Russia have the opportunity to maintain the rouble exchange rate, and next year we can expect it to strengthen.

“I believe that we will not go beyond 80 roubles for the dollar, and later, in 2021, the rouble exchange rate will strengthen,” top manager said. According to him, an increase in the dollar by 15 % occurred “within limits acceptable for banks.” He explained the unstable situation in the market by the fact that “investors are driven by emotions, not calculations.”

Kostin also supported the decision of the Central Bank not to raise the basic rate. At the same time, he expressed confidence that the regulator could provide banks with cheaper money through programmes that are developed specifically on non-market conditions to support people and businesses, reducing a state budget’s burden.