Russian SMEs Take 9,500 Credit Holidays Worth 51 Billion Rubles in Q4 2025

10:26; 19 February 2026 year

### Russian SMEs Use Credit Holidays to Tackle Financial Challenges By the end of the fourth quarter of 2025, Russian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) took advantage of 9,500 credit holidays, totaling 51 billion rubles, according to Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, who briefed President Vladimir Putin on the figures. Nabiullina highlighted that the credit holiday mechanism was initially introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic as a temporary measure to help businesses navigate reduced economic activity. In October 2025, the option to defer loan payments for SMEs was legally enshrined as a permanent measure. Businesses can now obtain a six-month credit holiday without penalties, regardless of their industry. Nabiullina noted that the total amount of loan restructuring for SMEs is significantly higher, as banks have their own assistance programs for borrowers, under which the majority of restructuring takes place. The total amount restructured through these programs in October-December 2025 reached 446 billion rubles (across 27,000 loans). In total, during the last quarter of 2025, SMEs had approximately 500 billion rubles in loans restructured, combining both credit holidays and bank-specific assistance programs.

Investment

Events

Niches and markets

Technologies and trends

Development infrastructure