New Delhi, May 11 (KNN) Russian exporters who had accumulated around USD 8 billion in special rupee Vostro accounts for trade with India have recently utilised nearly USD 4 billion of those funds to purchase Indian-made defence equipment, armaments, and other imports, as well as Indian securities.

The Vostro accounts were set up by the Reserve Bank of India last year to facilitate trade between Russia and India using Indian rupees, amid Western sanctions on Moscow. 

However, until recently much of the money in these accounts remained unspent due to limited investment opportunities in India.

According to sources quoted by the Mint newspaper, Russian exporters have deployed around 50 per cent of the USD 8 billion accumulated in just the last six months. 

The funds are being used for imports from India as well as investments allowed under regulations, such as government treasury bills.

India has increased imports of discounted Russian crude oil since the Ukraine conflict began, while also exporting machinery, auto parts and other engineering goods to Russia worth over USD 4 billion in 2023 so far.

Both India and Russia have been working to address the buildup of rupee payments in the Vostro accounts and facilitate investment and bilateral trade settlement using the accumulated funds.

(KNN Bureau)