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Russia's Central Bank to find options in case of SWIFT system exclusion

SWIFT exclusion will make payment confirmations less comfortable but the system could be replaced by other communication channels, Central Bank's First Deputy Head Ksenia Yudaeva says

ISTANBUL, February 10. / TASS /. Russia's Central Bank is exploring various options for information transferring between banks, in case of SWIFT system exclusion Central Bank's First Deputy Head Ksenia Yudaeva told journalists on Tuesday.

"We are looking at various opportunities for using the resources that we have and the funds that banks lend to each other. There are different options, we are exploring them all," Yudaeva said.

SWIFT system exclusion, which is unlikely according to Yudaeva, will make payment confirmations less comfortable. "But nevertheless, the system could be replaced by other communication channels", she said.

The possible exclusion of Russia from the SWIFT system was already being considered last spring. Western leaders considered the possibility of such measures as part of sanctions against Russia. In turn, SWIFT spoke against said measure, since the government cannot constrain business in this manner.

In this situation, Russia's Central Bank began creating its own SWIFT analog, and it has granted banks the access to it for domestic transactions since December of 2014. According to Russia's Central Bank, the new service was created for uninterrupted and secure transmission of financial communication inside the country.