Russia’s Massive 19% Interest Rate: Why No One’s Talking About It (But They Should Be) 📉

Clarus
4 min readSep 27, 2024
Photo from Getty Images

So, can we talk about how Russia’s interest rate just skyrocketed to 19%? Like, why is no one really talking about this? 😳 That’s HUGE, especially for a major economy trying to act like everything’s chill. But let’s break it down: this is bad news for Putin, the Russian economy, and probably even more dangerous for their future. Let’s get into why this 19% hike is like a ticking time bomb. ⏳💣

Why the 19% Interest Rate Matters 🤔

When a country hikes up its interest rate to 19%, you KNOW something’s wrong. For context, back in February 2022, Russia hit an unprecedented 20% to stop their economy from collapsing amid sanctions. And now, they’re back at 19% — just shy of that crisis level. 👀

So what does this mean? Higher interest rates are used to stop inflation or stabilize a currency, but it comes at a serious cost. The economy slows down. Loans become super expensive, businesses struggle, and investments dry up. 💸 When businesses can’t borrow or expand, people lose jobs, and the whole economy starts to shrink. That’s what’s on the horizon for Russia, and it’s not looking good. 💀

The Long-Term Impact: Bad News for Putin 😬

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Clarus

Hello, I'm Clarus. I cover geopolitics, with focus on the Ukraine War.