The Kremlin’s Easy Money Is Gone

Analysis Russia still has assets to tap for its war, but the political costs are growing. An illustrated portrait of Agathe Demarais Agathe Demarais , a columnist at Foreign Policy and a senior policy fellow on geoeconomics and technology at the European Council on Foreign Relations. A low-angle photo shows dark bronze statues of two men in profile facing right in the foreground. In the background behind them, a bright red sign with Cyrillic text is mounted on top of a multi-story concrete building with dark-framed windows. A statue of Soviet militiamen is seen in front of a building bearing the logo of Alfa Bank in Moscow on June 5. Alexander NEMENOV / AFP via July 27, 2026, AM Understanding the conflict four years on. More on this topic Pity Russian savers. In June, the Russian Finance Ministry announced its support for draft legislation to transfer nearly $40 billion in private pension savings into government coffers. Later that month, Russian Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov encouraged President Vladimir Putin to make the most of the almost $1.8 trillion that Russian firms and individuals hold in bank accounts to support state finances. According to Zyuganov’s calculations, “that is three state budgets … sitting there and enriching bankers.” Pondering whether the Russian economy will collapse is in fashion these days—but that may be the wrong question to ask. True, many Russians got richer during the war’s first two years—wages surged, military factories created plenty of jobs, and signing bonuses for new soldiers flowed to the poorest regions. Yet that redistribution machine is now grinding to a halt as the Kremlin is fast exhausting all the money pots it can easily access. In June, the Russian Finance Ministry announced its support for draft legislation to transfer nearly $40 billion in private pension savings into government coffers. Later that month, Russian Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov encouraged President Vladimir Putin to make the most of the almost $1.8 trillion that Russian firms and individuals hold in bank accounts to support state finances. According to Zyuganov’s calculations, “that is three state budgets … sitting there and enriching bankers.” Pondering whether the Russian economy will collapse is in fashion these days—but that may be the wrong question to ask. True, many Russians got richer during the war’s first two years—wages surged, military factories created plenty of jobs, and signing bonuses for new soldiers flowed to the poorest regions. Yet that redistribution machine is now grinding to a halt as the Kremlin is fast exhausting all the money pots it can easily access.