Russia's Central Bank proposes banning new investors from buying more than 50,000 rubles in foreign stocks

As a new bill introducing regulatory categories for investors makes its way through Russia’s State Duma, the country’s Central Bank has introduced a set of amendments that would place severe restrictions on those who are just beginning to invest.

RBC reported that the amendments restrict the total value of foreign companies’ stocks and other risky stocks that beginning investors can buy to 50,000 rubles (currently $782.50). RIA Novosti noted that this would prevent most individual investors from buying stocks in large foreign companies like Google. In order to move into the next regulatory category and broaden their legal trading sphere, investors would have to accumulate 1.4 million rubles ($21,910).

The bill remains subject to further change. Previous versions of it had limited investors to 100,000 rubles ($1,565) in foreign and risky investments until they accumulated 400,000 rubles ($6,260).