Russia is considering linking the ruble’s value to gold or other commodities. This was announced by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, quoted by TASS, quoted by Investor.
“This issue is currently being discussed,” Peskov told reporters on Friday. He recalled that earlier the topic was proposed by the Secretary of the Security Council of Russia Nikolai Patrushev.
An interview with Patrushev was published in Rossiyskaya Gazeta on Tuesday, where he said experts were considering a proposal by the scientific community to create an alternative monetary and financial system. It is proposed to set the value of the ruble to be backed by both gold and other raw materials in order to bring its exchange rate in line with real purchasing power parity.
According to him, in order for any national financial system to have sovereignty, its means of payment must have intrinsic value and price stability, and not be pegged to the dollar.
Contrary to the Kremlin’s position, the governor of Russia’s central bank, Elvira Nabiulina, rejected the idea of pegging the ruble to gold.
“It has not been discussed in any way,” she told reporters after it became clear that the institution was reducing the base interest rate by 300 basis points. The ruble must continue to have a floating exchange rate, she said. However, Nabiulina added that the volatility of the currency will be increased due to capital controls imposed after the start of the war in Ukraine.
Continuing its long-standing efforts to reduce its exposure to the US dollar, the Russian central bank reduced the share of the currency in its reserves to 10.9% as of January 1 from 21.2% a year earlier. Gold also fell slightly to 21.5%.
Sanctions against the Russian central bank over the invasion of Ukraine have deprived it of access to nearly half of its holdings, with virtually only gold and yuan at its disposal. Prior to the war, President Vladimir Putin had repeatedly said that Russia should end its dependence on the US dollar as an international reserve currency.
