Bank of Russia congratulates war veterans on Victory Day
On 7 May 2019, in the run-up to the 74th Victory anniversary, the Bank of Russia’s headquarters in Moscow hosted a festive ceremony to congratulate veterans of the Great Patriotic War.
Attending the event were veterans who worked for the USSR State Bank in post-war years. Alexander Zolotov, an anti-aircraft gunner who defended Moscow, Kursk and Oryol, and fought in Poland, extended his warm congratulations on the Victory Day. His congratulations were shared by Fyodor Barilov, his comrade in arms, who joined at the Transbaikal front in 1943 and fought against the fascist Japan army later on.
Elvira Nabiullina, Bank of Russia Governor, addressed the veterans in her welcoming remarks: ‘I am honoured to welcome you in this hall today. As many as 74 years have passed after the Victory in the Great Patriotic War, but people will always remember this Victory in the fight against fascism. The USSR State Bank faced serious challenges during the war. It had to find ways to provide lending to the defence industry and factories working in other sectors, support payment and settlement systems, and enhance the financial and payment discipline. In the post-war period, during the peace-building years, banking sector employees together with other people did their best to restore the war-shattered economy.’
Elvira Nabiullina recalled that most of the USSR State Bank’s employees were conscripted to the field army – more than 18,000 employees went to the battlefield and many of them never returned home.
The guests honoured the memory of those perished in the Great Patriotic War with a moment of silence and laid flowers to the Eternal Flame and the commemorative plaque citing the names of Bank of Russia employees who died in the war.
