OREANDA-NEWS  In the first seven months of 2026, cash loans in Russia increased dramatically in both quantity and volume. This is reported by RIA Novosti with reference to VTB data.

During the reporting period, Russians issued a total of more than 15 million such loans, the financial institution said. In annual terms, the indicator increased by about 1.4 times, or by 43 percent.

The total volume of cash loans during this time jumped by 64 percent and reached 2.9 trillion rubles, the bank added. Analysts cited the protracted monetary policy easing of the Central Bank (CB) and pent-up demand for consumer purposes as the main reasons for this trend.

In the second half of July, the Central Bank's management lowered the key rate by 25 basis points (bp) from 14.25 to 14 percent per annum. VTB previously predicted a reduction in the bar by another 100 bps. Mitigation of PREP, coupled with a gradual decrease in market rates and a slowdown in real income growth, experts believe, will keep demand for basic types of loans at a high level in the foreseeable future.