The National Bank of Kyrgyzstan has banned banks from making payments without real deliveries. The corresponding resolution was adopted by its board.
The central bank has banned the country’s banks from making payments under contracts without real delivery of goods and services to the country from the end of September. The restrictions come into force three weeks after the official publication and will be valid for one year.
«To introduce a one-year restriction for organizations supervised by the National Bank on accepting payment orders for execution and otherwise make payments under contracts concluded by other persons, the subject of which are goods, works and services coming from foreign countries or to foreign countries, without real delivery to the territory of the Kyrgyz Republic, except for authorized state companies determined by the Cabinet of Ministers,» the document says.
It is explained that such a decision was made «in order to ensure economic security and maintain financial stability.»
RBK reports, citing logistics companies, that the share of refusals through Central Asian banks increased to 30 percent in June 2024. At the same time, the greatest difficulties arose with the payment for goods between Russia and Kyrgyzstan, business representatives estimated.
Number of difficulties with payments from the Russian Federation increased after the U.S. Department of the Treasury received the right to impose sanctions against foreign banks for assistance in transactions for the supply of certain materials and equipment to the Russian defense industry in December 2023.
These are bank transfers to counterparties located outside the Kyrgyz Republic, including from Russia, IPN Partners Advisor Dmitry Sorokin. The decision probably concerns payments under contracts that do not provide for the delivery of goods directly to the customs territory of Kyrgyzstan, that is, the goods are not intended for consumption in this country, Senior Partner of O2Consulting Tatyana Safonova notes.
The ban may also be a measure to combat payments under fictitious contracts, that is, to prevent fictitious transactions, where payments are made without real movement of goods. It may concern schemes that are used to withdraw funds from the state and legalize income, as well as payments under contracts with non-residents, both from Russia and from other countries.
According to experts, the National Bank’s wording implies that payments are possible when the goods are on the territory of the Kyrgyz Republic, undergo customs clearance and are registered in the goods movement accounting system.
