Russia’s central bank and foreign wealth fund are estimated to own a quarter of all Chinese bonds held by foreign investors, according to ANZ, representing another potential lifeline for Moscow to withstand sanctions.
The Bank of Russia and the National Wealth Fund are estimated to hold around $80 billion and $60 billion of yuan debt, according to a research report by ANZ analysts.
This would represent almost a quarter of all foreign holdings of Chinese bonds which totaled 4 trillion yuan ($633 billion) in 2021.
Dodging Sanctions
According to the ANZ report, Russia could potentially use their yuan assets alongside China’s Cross-Border International Payments System (CIPS) to counter Western sanctions.
«Russia’s China bond holdings and CNY could be major foreign assets and currency that Russia can access,» the report said. «We are watching if Russia will liquidate the assets if CNY cash is needed to meet other payment obligations.»
