Anastasia Gorbacheva10:03, 15.09.25

Barter transactions help to circumvent the problems caused by the SWIFT shutdown.

For the first time since the 1990s, barter is gaining momentum in Russian foreign trade . Companies trying to circumvent sanctions are exchanging wheat for Chinese cars and flax seeds for building materials.

Reuters writes that the return of barter shows how much the war in Ukraine has distorted Moscow’s trade relations, 30 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union ushered in Russia’s economic integration with the West.

In 2024, the Russian Ministry of Economy released a 14-page “Guide to Foreign Trade Barter Transactions” that advises businesses on how to use this method to circumvent sanctions. It even suggests creating a trading platform that would operate as a barter exchange.

“The growth of barter is a symptom of de-dollarization, the pressure of sanctions and liquidity problems among partners,” Maxim Spassky, secretary of the General Council of the Russian-Asian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, told Reuters.

He believes that barter volumes are likely to continue to grow.

At the same time, one of the sources in the trade reported that this system helps to circumvent sanctions that cut off Russian banks from transactions with dollars and euros.

Three analysts said a possible indicator of the scale of the barter was the growing discrepancy between the central bank’s foreign trade statistics and customs data, which reached $7 billion in the first half of 2025.

In response to a request for comment, the Russian customs service confirmed that barter is carried out with various countries “on a wide range of goods.” However, they noted that the number of barter transactions is insignificant compared to the total volume of foreign trade contracts.

According to published data from the Federal Customs Service, Russia’s foreign trade surplus in January-July fell by 14% compared to the previous year, to $77.2 billion. Exports during this period fell by $11.5 billion to $232.6 billion, while imports rose by $1.2 billion to $155.4 billion.

Equipment and cars in exchange for grain

Reuters journalists found out through their sources that in one of the dealsChinese cars were exchanged for wheat. In addition, in two other transactions, flax seeds were exchanged for various goods, including household appliances and building materials from China.

Experts familiar with Russia’s foreign trade said one flax transaction, recorded in a 2024 declaration by the customs service of Russia’s Urals region, was valued at about $100,000.

In other deals, metals were shipped to China in exchange for cars, Chinese services were exchanged for raw materials, and a Russian importer bought aluminum to pay a Chinese company. One deal was with Pakistan.

It is noted that, thanks to some barter deals, Western goods have entered Russia despite sanctions.

Barter is not the only way to get around Western restrictions. Some traders use so-called “payment agents” who, for a fee, facilitate payments through various schemes, but such transactions are risky.

Another way to make a payment is through Russian state-owned bank VTB, which has a branch in Shanghai. Others use cryptocurrencies pegged to the dollar.

Problems with settlements with Russia – main news

In August 2024, Russians complained that  payments worth billions of yuan were “stuck”  as Chinese banks began to stop operations with Russia.

On January 10, 2025, problems in foreign trade settlements forced large Russian banks  to develop new schemes for settlements with China . 

On August 18, Reuters first reported on the revival of barter  in Russia as a way to solve the problem of settlements when concluding deals with trading partners, in particular with China.

(C)UNIAN 2025