Russia's central bank lent all of the five billion roubles it had available to commercial banks this week, providing three-month, collateral-free loans at an average rate of 13 per cent.

Introduced last October, the regulator's loans are intended to help increase liquidity in Russia's banking system.

Banks in the country bid for more than 15 billion roubles at yesterday's auction, a quantity which was substantially more than the roubles on offer. Reuters reports that the auction's cut-off rate was 12.52 per cent.

Today, the daily limit for currency swap operations in Russia was set at five billion roubles, the same limit set by the central bank in the previous trading session.

Meanwhile, the country's deputy minister for economic development has claimed high interest rates and a strengthening rouble present serious risks to Russia's economic growth.

Andrei Klepach told delegates at a London banking conference today that there is a high risk of another dip in the nation's economy in 2010, with more unemployment likely in the winter. He also suggested that cuts in interest rates will discourage short-term capital flows.

Since April, the Russian central bank has cut interest rates in the country by four percentage points.