Russians are catastrophically short of working capital to service loans and cover daily living expenses. A significant decrease in the population's income, high bank rates, difficulties in obtaining loans from banks, a "tainted" previous credit history – these and other problems are forcing Russian citizens to turn to pawnshops more often. This was reported by the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine (FIS), informs UNN.
Details
It is noted that in 2025, the client flow increased by 15%, and in 2026, the trend continues at plus 7-10% monthly. At the same time, the net profit of pawnshops in Russia grew by approximately 50% compared to the previous year.
According to experts, this year the pawnshop market in Russia could reach 1 trillion rubles and begin to compete in volume with niche marketplaces (990 billion rubles) and the fishing industry (1.1 trillion rubles). The sector is developing so effectively that one of the leading players in the Russian market, the "MGKL Group," is negotiating to buy a bank. In other words, pawnshops in Russia are becoming a mass financial instrument.
The population's recourse to pawnshops in Russia indicates a distrust of official banking credit policy. Currently, the number of loans in Russian pawnshops is 2-2.5 million per year, the average check tends to constantly grow, and luxury watches, jewelry, and cars are increasingly used as collateral. The client refusal rate is very low – 0.4%, so Russians can quickly get cash, if, of course, they have something to pawn
At the same time, according to the Central Bank of Russia, in January 2026 alone, clients withdrew a record amount from bank cards since 2022 – 1.6 trillion rubles.
Recall
According to the FIS, Moscow plans to forcibly transfer Russians' pension savings into a new state scheme. This involves about 3 trillion rubles.