Russian banks eye syariah financing as crisis looms

Dubai

RUSSIAN lenders are stepping up efforts to tap Islamic finance as international sanctions and a slump in oil prices push the world's biggest energy exporter to the brink of a recession.

Vnesheconombank, Russia's state development bank, is seeking advice from lenders in the Middle East on how to sell its first Islamic bonds, the RIA Novosti state-news service reported on Dec 16. Banks and companies are seeking syariah financing after the nation's currency weakened to an all-time low almost two weeks ago, according to the Russian Business Council in Dubai.