Monetary Policy in the Russian Federation and Its Impact on the Business Sector in 2021–2024

This paper examines the monetary policy of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation for the period 2021–2024 and its impact on the business sector amid high inflation, sanctions, and fiscal dominance. The theoretical section defines the objectives and instruments of monetary policy under an inflation-targeting regime and describes the transmission channels and specific features of the Bank of Russia’s institutional framework. The analytical section, based on secondary data from the Bank of Russia, Rosstat, the IMF, and other institutions, tracks developments in the key interest rate, inflation, banking sector liquidity, the exchange rate, and key macroeconomic indicators. It then assesses their impact on businesses through indicators of aggregate indebtedness, the volume of loans granted, changes in the gross fixed capital formation, and the number of newly established and dissolved businesses, with a particular focus on the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) segment. The results show that monetary policy after 2022 primarily served a stabilizing and defensive function: it managed to prevent uncontrolled inflation and a collapse of the financial system, but at the cost of persistently high interest rates, selective support through subsidized programs, and a deterioration in financial conditions, particularly for highly indebted and civilian enterprises with fewer ties to the state.