If President Vladimir Putin realises his ambitions, Moscow will become an international financial hub on a par with London or New York, and the rouble will become an international reserve currency. Sceptics scoff at such talk, arguing that it will take more than a few skyscrapers to make a world class financial centre. But Russia is making progress towards opening up its markets.

This month Russia granted Euroclear Bank, the Belgian post-trade services group, access to the National Settlement Depository, a unit of Moscow Exchange Group and the country’s main securities depository.

The move is significant because by connecting Russia’s capital markets into a pan-European post trade services system, it will be far easier for foreign companies to access a range of local rouble bonds, including corporate securities and OFZs, one of the most actively traded classes of government bonds.