The head of Russian state-run bank VTB, Andrei Kostin, says his initiative to exempt Russians with low incomes from personal income tax is gaining support, TASS reported.
Kostin was speaking on the sidelines of the Russia Calling! business forum, organized by VTB’s investment arm, VTB Capital, on Wednesday.
“So far, I’m trying to mobilize the public opinion. Frankly, it appears to me that the support for this idea is really growing,” Kostin said, adding that he sees support for this idea among Russian government and presidential administration officials.
“I think that this idea, just like de-dollarization, will receive positive feedback,” he added.
During the Moscow Financial Forum in early September, the banker voiced the proposal to establish the minimal income that would be exempt from the income tax, and, therefore, to support low-income citizens.
In his opinion, the move will help Russians with low income to receive additional money and will contribute to the growth of internal demand.
The VTB head made the headlines this week when he and other top managers of the group met the guests at a traditional reception for the investment forum dressed in Harry Potter costumes.
The evening reception, which took place in Moscow on Wednesday, was thematic in nature, just like in previous years. This year, the main plot of the evening was the story from the popular series of novels by J. K. Rowling.
