Although Serbia has not imposed sanctions on Russia or suspended financial transactions, the implementation of international sanctions against Russia — particularly targeting its financial sector — has significantly affected payment operations between the two countries, the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) told RT Balkan.
Despite these restrictions, the value of remittances arriving in Serbia has not decreased significantly. According to NBS data, Serbia received €4.9 billion in remittances in 2024, slightly down from €5 billion in 2023. Between January and August 2025, remittance inflows totaled €3.36 billion, almost unchanged from the same period in 2024.
Remittances from Russia accounted for about 5.5% of total inflows in 2024, or €271.6 million, while in the first half of 2025 they represented 5.3%, amounting to €123.3 million, down from €154.8 million a year earlier.
The NBS stated that banks in Serbia have not changed their procedures for processing remittances from Russia but noted that some transactions could not be completed due to restrictions imposed by foreign correspondent banks complying with international sanctions.
The central bank added that as sanctions lists expand to include new Russian entities and individuals — particularly banks — this further limits payment operations with the Russian Federation.
