Russians Aggressively Buying Cash and Crypto During the Wagner Rebellion

In the past nine months, the Russians have withdrawn a record amount of cash by the end of the week.

Cash currency rates in exchange offices increased by tens of rubles.

Crypto exchanges saw especially advanced citizens purchasing Tether stablecoin.

The events surrounding Wagner PMC have caused a dramatic increase in the demand for cash rubles, foreign currency, and crypto assets.

The Central Bank's statistics show that on Friday, June 23, the amount of cash in circulation in Russia increased by 105.3 billion rubles - the most significant surge in demand for cash since September 22-23 of last year, when partial mobilization was declared, according to RBC.

Friday's data showed the amount of cash withdrawals by the population and enterprises, which almost completely accounts for the demand over the next two weekends.

Over the weekend, the rates of cash currencies in exchange offices experienced a sharp increase. On Saturday, some exchange offices in Moscow had a dollar and euro purchase rate of 200 rubles. Banks reported that offices had been closed "in certain regions."

First Deputy Prime Minister Andrey Belousov reported that the demand for cash in 15 regions of Russia had increased by an average of 30%, with the Voronezh, Rostov, and Lipetsk regions experiencing an increase of 70-80%.

Bloomberg reported that the Russians had a surge in purchasing the Tether stablecoin during the Wagner rebellion. The USDT trading volume for rubles increased threefold in one day, reaching $15 million.

Kaiko, a research firm specializing in blockchain technologies, reported that Tether trading volume for rubles has hit an all-time high since December 2022. However, the same could not be said for the more volatile bitcoin, as no similar trends were observed.