Russia's VTB Bank has opened applications for preferential mortgages in the Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine's Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts, the state-controlled Interfax news agency reported on Oct. 30, citing the bank's press service.
Moscow has launched incentives for Russian citizens to settle in the occupied territories while thousands of Ukrainians fled, aiming to Russify the conquered land.
The Russian banking giant offered interest rates as low as 2%, according to Interfax, and plans to expand its offer to the occupied territories in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts as soon as "housing constructions" start there.
Russia's war has laid waste to the Ukrainian cities and villages, leaving many of them in ruins.
Russian President Vladimir Putin declared the illegal annexation of the four aforementioned oblasts in September 2022. Crimea and parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts have been occupied since the start of the Russian aggression in 2014.
Kyiv says peace talks should be held on the condition of Russia's full withdrawal from Ukraine.
VTB specified that the 2% annual rate would be fixed for the entire loan term, up to 30 years, with an initial payment of 10.1% of the housing price and loan amounts reaching up to 6 million rubles ($62,000).
The partially state-owned bank's decision comes after Putin's call on banks to expand their services in the occupied territories at the beginning of 2024.
Dinara Khalilova
