Bank of Russia ranks MFOs by customer complaints

The Bank of Russia's inaugural ranking includes microfinance organizations that received at least two substantiated complaints regarding microloan issuance in 2025.

The regulator strictly considers only those complaints that involve proven violations of consumer rights, ensuring the integrity of the assessment.

This comprehensive indicator incorporates grievances lodged by individuals directly with the Bank of Russia, as well as those handled by financial ombudsmen.

Deputy Governor Mikhail Mamuta highlighted the effectiveness of such public benchmarking, noting, "We see that they prove to be an effective public benchmarking tool measuring organisations' customer centricity.

" He emphasized that top-ranked market participants are motivated to refine their business processes, revise customer service models, and proactively address quality issues.

This initiative is expected to encourage MFOs to significantly enhance the quality of their customer service and streamline property settlement processes, fostering a more customer-centric market environment.

The ultimate goal is a gradual reduction in complaints against individual MFOs and the market as a whole, making the sector more consumer-friendly.

To ensure a fair and relevant comparison for consumers, the Bank of Russia's ranking divides MFOs into two distinct categories.

The first table features large entities, defined as those with over one million microloan agreements in their portfolio.

Conversely, the second table is dedicated to smaller organizations, encompassing those with fewer than one million microloan agreements.

This strategic segmentation allows customers to compare companies whose client bases are similar in size and operational scale, providing a more accurate perspective on their performance.

An MFO's position within its respective ranking is determined by the number of substantiated complaints it receives per 100,000 microloan agreements.

This normalized metric offers a standardized way to assess customer satisfaction and service quality, irrespective of an MFO's overall size, thereby empowering consumers with more transparent and comparable information to make informed choices when selecting a microfinance provider.