UrBC, Yekaterinburg, January 31, 2020. Close to 5,700 escrow accounts (total account balance: more than RUB 12.4bn) had been opened in Ural Federal Districts by early 2020, the Bank of Russia’s Ural division’s press service reports.

’So far, 116 loan agreements (total amount: RUB 52.5bn) have been signed by banks and housing developers in Ural Federal District. The scheme allowing the funding of shared-equity construction through escrow accounts became available in the summer of 2019,’ the press service says.

As soon as November 2019, a number of housing projects got completed in Ural Federal District, with the developers becoming entitled to their money. As of early 2020, 483 escrow accounts (total amount: more than RUB 1bn) have been made available. Most of these accounts were opened in Tyumen Region (excluding its two autonomous regions) and Chelyabinsk Region.

Sverdlovsk Region, however, remains Ural Federal District’s leading market for the bank-developer interaction. As of January 1, 2020, housing developers signed 32 loan agreements (total amount: close to RUB 20bn) with banks. Besides, nearly 1,700 escrow accounts got set up (total account balance: RUB 4.47bn).