To maintain the exchange rate of the ruble, the Central Bank had to raise the refinancing rate and increase currency interventions. By the end of May, the interest rate was raised to 150% per annum, effectively freezing the currency and stock markets. Gold and foreign exchange reserves were spent at such a rapid pace during the summer that they would not have lasted until the end of the year. In some weeks, these outflows exceeded a billion dollars, while the total reserves at that time were no more than 20 billion (for comparison, in February 2023, they were 580 billion dollars)