National Wealth Fund Liquid Assets Fall to Record-Low 32.1% at Start of 2025
The share of liquid assets in the National Wealth Fund (NWF) of Russia fell to a record low of 32.1% by the start of 2025, according to an analytical note by the Accounts Chamber on the execution of the federal budget for 2024, Interfax reported on March 18, 2025. A year earlier the ratio stood at 41.9%, and at the start of 2023 it was 58.8%.
The liquid part of the fund shrank by a quarter
Over 2024, the volume of the NWF's liquid assets decreased by 1 trillion 201.9 billion rubles, or 24%, to 3 trillion 810 billion rubles. The Accounts Chamber notes that the remaining liquid portion "only slightly exceeds the average monthly spending of the federal budget for 2025". For comparison, Russia's public debt servicing costs planned for 2025 amount to 3 trillion 181.7 billion rubles, and the fund's liquid assets exceed that figure by 19.7%.
Total volume and structure: yuan and gold
The total volume of the NWF stood at 11 trillion 879.973 billion rubles as of January 1, 2025, down 85.102 billion rubles, or 0.7%, over the year. The fund's structure remained two-component: 57.8% in yuan and 42.2% in gold, against 57.1% and 42.9% respectively a year earlier.
The fund's dynamics over the year were driven by the following factors:
- transfers to the single account of the federal budget — 1 trillion 300.172 billion rubles, of which 1.3 trillion rubles went to cover the budget deficit and 172 million rubles to co-finance pension savings;
- crediting of additional oil and gas revenues for 2023 — 38.798 billion rubles;
- exchange rate differences and gold revaluation — 1 trillion 102.366 billion rubles;
- market revaluation of Sberbank, Aeroflot and VTB shares — 72.324 billion rubles;
- other factors — 1.581 billion rubles.
Other financial assets: 67.9% of the fund
NWF funds invested in other financial assets grew by 1 trillion 116.809 billion rubles, or 16.1%, over 2024, to 8.08 trillion rubles, equivalent to 4% of GDP. The share of this part in the fund's total volume rose from 58.1% to 67.9%. Within the portfolio, 38.7% is held in Sberbank (MOEX: SBER) ordinary shares, with a further 20% placed in self-recouping infrastructure projects.
Revaluation of portfolio shares
- Sberbank: plus 56.354 billion rubles, or plus 1.8%;
- Aeroflot (MOEX: AFLT): plus 56.631 billion rubles, up 1.7 times;
- VTB (MOEX: VTBR): minus 40.661 billion rubles, or minus 30.4%.
Management income and debt servicing
Income from managing NWF funds, credited to the federal budget for 2024, totaled 484.704 billion rubles, 1% above the forecast. Public debt servicing costs in 2024 reached 2.329 trillion rubles, or 5.8% of total budget spending, which is 1.8 percentage points above the 2019 level.
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