Contemporary Empirical Aspects of Banking and Insurance as Financial Market Segments: a Case Study of Belgorod Region

摘要

The paper analyses contemporary empirical aspects of the financial market development in terms of its main segments, based on the case of an individual region of Russia. The research is focused on the recent changes in the region's financial market. The time period under study includes months before and after the first COVID-19 pandemic. The financial markets of various Russian regions are proved to follow major trends which are characteristic of the national financial market. A number of specific features are revealed, including infrastructural changes in the region's financial market, and the market participants' activity. Positive dynamics have been revealed in private deposits, despite the trend toward a decrease in average interest rates, which bears witness to people's confidence in the region's banking segment. The latter has supported a revival of demand for consumer goods and a revitalization of business activities in Belgorod region after the COVID-related restrictions were lifted. Banking and insurance as segments of Belgorod regional financial market are the objects of the study. Statistical and analytical data available at Russia's Central Bank website and some regional research findings are used as the information source. The authors' conclusions and recommendations may differ from the official stance of Russia's Central Bank.