Several of the poorest regions of Russia have shown an anomalous increase in funds in the bank accounts of Russian citizens: while the average growth has been between 6-9% over the past five years, in 2023 Altai, for example, showed an increase of 18.95%,
Buryatia by 33.26%, and Tuva by a record-breaking 57.57%. However, despite this wealth surge, nearly a third of Tuva’s population and over 20% of the populations of Buryatia and Altai still live below the poverty line.
According to an analytical note published by BOFIT – the Institute for Economies in Transition at the Bank of Finland, the sharp increase in funds in citizens’ bank accounts can be attributed to payments to contract soldiers and mobilized individuals participating in the war with Ukraine.
Additionally, the increase in prosperity among the population has been facilitated by “war chests” – compensations provided to the families of the deceased and wounded.
Comparing the list of regions that showed the highest increase in funds in bank accounts with those that sent the largest number of mobilized individuals to the war, researcher Laura Solanko discovered a series of coincidences in the statistics of the Central Bank of Russia.
She concluded that there is a stable connection between the increase in the population’s prosperity in these regions and the proportion of mobilized men.
As clarified by “Meduza,” the first to draw attention to the analytical note by BOFIT, the sharp increase in the volume of bank accounts cannot be explained by either increased inflation in these regions, the peculiarities of their banking market, or other macroeconomic factors.
In September 2022, the Russian authorities announced a so-called partial mobilization. According to official data, around 300,000 people were called up for the war with Ukraine.
The mobilization decree continues to be in effect to this day.
The total amount of payments due to participants in the so-called “special military operation” is as follows: for ordinary soldiers – 204,000 rubles (2.054,30 Euro), for commanders – from 232,000 rubles (2.336,27 Euro).
Additionally, according to Presidential Decree No. 787, military personnel mobilised and signing contracts after September 21, 2022, are entitled to a one-time monetary payment of 195,000 rubles (1.963,96 Euro).
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