ArmInfo. The Armenian interbank foreign exchange market saw a significant shift in trading dynamics during the week of January 19 to 23, 2026. While dollar transactions decreased, ruble transactions maintained their growth momentum. No euro transactions were conducted. Specifically, the trend in dollar transactions shifted from a 79% growth to a 65% decline, while the growth of ruble transactions slowed significantly, from 7.8 times to 29%. This resulted in the weekly ruble volume transactions regaining their its 2.2-fold lead over dollar transactions, while the previous week, dollar transactions still dominated (2-fold).
During the reporting week (January 19-23, 2026 compared to January 12-16, 2026), dollar buying and selling remained up, while euro and ruble buying and selling trends reversed. As a result, from January 19 to 23, the dram continued to strengthen against the dollar, from AMD 380.5 to AMD379.5/$1, weakening against the euro, from AMD 441.3 to AMD 443/1EUR, and weakening further against the ruble, from AMD 4.84 to AMD 4.93/1RUB. A year earlier, on January 23, 2025, the dram exchange rate against the dollar was AMD 399/1$, against the euro - AMD 417.5/1EUR, and against the ruble - AMD 4.01 /1RUB. Compared to current rates, this indicates an annual revaluation of the dram against the dollar and a devaluation against the euro and ruble.
According to the Central Bank of the Republic of Armenia, from January 19 to 23, 2026, there were four dollar, and four ruble transactions conducted in the interbank foreign exchange market. These transactions occurred simultaneously on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday (January 19, 20, and 23). As a result, the total weekly dollar transaction volume amounted to $6 million at an average exchange rate of AMD 379.30 /1$ (compared to AMD 380.30/1$ the week before), while the total volume of ruble transactions amounted to 1 billion rubles at an average exchange rate of AMD 4.91/1RUB (compared to AMD 4.84 /1RUB the previous week). The maximum dollar volume was recorded on Tuesday (January 20) at $2 million. The highest ruble volume also occurred on the same day, and the same volume was recorded on Thursday (January 20 and 22) at 290 million rubles.
In Armenia's inteabank foreign exchange market from January 19- 23, 2026, compared to the previous week (12-16.01.26), there was a slight decrease in the growth of dollar purchases from 57% to 54%, while sales increased from 26% to 67%. In euro transactions, both purchases and sales reversed from 104-22% growth to a 14-24% decline. Similarly, in ruble transactions, there was a reversal from 211-165% growth to a 7-42% decline.
As a result, during the reporting week, $208.9 million was purchased at an average rate of AMD 378.08 /1$, 47.7 million euros at an average rate of AMD 438.62/1EUR, and 9.9 billion rubles at an average rate of AMD 4.86/1 RUB. Additionally, $305.5 million were sold at an average rate of AMD379.82 /1$, 42.9 million euros at an average rate of AMD 445.37 /1 EUR, and 1.7 billion rubles at an average rate of AMD 4.97 /1 RUB. Monday saw the highest volume of euro sales and ruble purchases (January 19 - 11.99 million euros and 2.3 billion rubles), followed by Tuesday with the highest dollar purchase (January 20 - $50.2 million), Wednesday with the highest euro purchase (January 21 - 20.3 million euros), Thursday with the highest ruble sales (January 22 - 382.2 million rubles), and Friday with the highest dollar sales (January 23 - over $85 million). According to the Central Bank of Armenia, in the 10 months of 2025, the Central Bank intervened in the foreign exchange market in the amount of $1.419 billion from February to October, strengthening the exchange rate from AMD 394.19 /1$ in February to AMD383.44/1$ in October. These were only purchases.
In the interbank foreign exchange market, in the 10 months of 2025, $6.1 billion, 1.7 billion euros, and 592.8 billion rubles were purchased, while $8.9 billion, 2.7 billion euros, and 149.9 billion rubles were sold. This resulted in a buying rate of AMD 381.49 /1$, AMD 442.11/1EUR, and AMD 4.69/1 RUB market in October, and a selling rate of AMD 383.69/1$, AMD 448.83/1EUR, and AMD 4.79 drams/1 RUB, compared to the December 2024 rates of AMD 394.84/$1, AMD 413.75 /1EUR, and AMD 3.84 /1 RUB for buying, and AMD 398.16/1$, AMD 420.09 /1EUR, and AMD 3.97/1 RUB for selling. In the 10 months of 2025, dollar transactions worth over $485 million and ruble transactions worth 32.1 billion rubles were carried out in the interbank foreign exchange market, while euro transactions were concluded only in February-March and May for a total of 1.9 million euros. This was accompanied by a weakening of the dram against the ruble to AMD 4.72/1RUB in October and a strengthening against the dollar to AMD 383.17/1$, compared to AMD 3.84/1RUB and AMD 396.1/1$ in December 2024, respectively. During this period, the largest volume of dollar transactions was concluded in January ($81 million), ruble transactions in May (7.7 billion rubles), and euro transactions in February (1 million euros).
After eight years of "silence," the currency exchange platform resumed operations in June 2024. Over the five-month period (June-October), dollar transactions totaling $14.7 million were conducted, with the dram strengthening from AMD 388.9 /$1 in June to AMD 387.75 $1 in October. In November- December 2024, the foreign exchange platform was idle. Then, in 2025, over the seven months of 2025, dollar transactions totaling $10.1 million were conducted on the foreign exchange platform, with the dram strengthening from AMD 398.75/$1 in January to AMD 384.09/$1 in July. The currency exchange market was active during the seven months under review, reaching its peak monthly volume in July - $3.3 million.
Recall, ruble transactions in the Armenian interbank foreign exchange market started on March 14, 2022. From that point until the end of the year, transactions totaling 8.7 billion rubles were conducted, with an additional 17.5 billion rubles for the entire 2023. This was accompanied by a weakening of the dram against the ruble in the interbank foreign exchange market from March to December 2022, from AMD 4.86 to AMD 5.8/1RUB. However, the dram subsequently strengthened against the ruble to AMD 4.47/1RUB by the end of 2023 and further to AMD 3.84/1RUB by the end of 2024. However, since 2025, the dram has once again begun to weaken against the ruble. By the mid-year mark, it had reverted to the initial exchange rate of AMD 4.86 /1RUB in the interbank foreign exchange market.
Recall, ruble transactions in the Armenian interbank foreign exchange market started on March 14, 2022. From that point until the end of the year, transactions totaling 8.7 billion rubles were conducted, with an additional 17.5 billion rubles for the entire 2023. This was accompanied by a weakening of the dram against the ruble in the interbank foreign exchange market from March to December 2022, from AMD 4.86 to AMD 5.8/1RUB. However, the dram subsequently strengthened against the ruble to AMD 4.47/1RUB by the end of 2023 and further to AMD 3.84/1RUB by the end of 2024. However, since 2025, the dram has once again begun to weaken against the ruble. By the mid-year mark, the exchange rate returned to its original level of AMD 4.86 /1RUB, with further progress to AMD 4,88/1RUB in July. It then t strengthened to AMD 4,62/1RUB in September, before devaluation started again in October.
