March 5, 2022- 9:11 a.m.
India wants to bypass dollar to keep trading with Russia
New Delhi considering switching to rupee-ruble settlements amid sanctions on Moscow
India is in search of efficient tools to skirt around the latest penalties imposed on Russia over the conflict in Ukraine, as New Delhi looks to keep trade with Moscow going, Indian media reports.
Among the options reportedly being considered are making settlements via foreign financial institutions that don’t operate in countries that have supported the punitive measures against Russia, routing payments through minor Russian lenders unaffected by the SWIFT ban, and boosting its rupee-ruble arrangement.
Russian banking majors Sberbank and Gazprombank have been exempted from the latest sanctions so far due to their essential role in processing payments for the EU’s gas and oil imports from Russia.
