Russia's balance of payments just posted a record $12.2 billion in "net errors and omissions" for Q2 2026 — the largest unexplained hole since records began in 1994.
The previous record was $8.3 billion in 2009.
It jumped from $1.4 billion the quarter before — an 8.7x increase.
In plain terms: $12.2 billion left Russia and nobody can officially account for where it went.
That's roughly 10% of quarterly export revenue and a third of the trade surplus.
The central bank calls it a statistical discrepancy.
Bloomberg reported in July that several of Russia's richest people — including Kremlin-connected figures — moved billions abroad over the past year through crypto, gold, Dubai property, and private funds.
Destinations: UAE, Cyprus, Türkiye, Saudi Arabia, Africa.
Motivations cited: slowing economy, budget strain, and fear of state asset seizures — which have totaled ~980 billion rubles in 2026 alone.
It's not courtroom proof of capital flight.
Sanctions workarounds, parallel imports, and oil payment timing can all inflate the number.
Russia still ran a $21.4 billion current-account surplus that quarter.
- TVP World
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3September 10, 2026 2.1K
