At least three of Russia’s systemically important banks have privately drawn up contingency plans to request government capital injections within the next year if the volume of bad loans continues to climb, according to internal documents and officials cited by Bloomberg News. Executives at the lenders—identified in the discussions as Sberbank, VTB and Gazprombank—warn that prospective loan losses could far exceed the levels shown in public filings. Their unpublished assessments indicate that without state support the deterioration could endanger the wider financial system. The behind-the-scenes deliberations follow a June assessment by Russian banking officials that the economy faces a credible risk of a systemic banking crisis in the next 12 months, a view that contrasts with the Bank of Russia’s public assurance that the sector remains well-capitalised. Sanctions, high interest rates and surging defence spending are squeezing borrowers and driving defaults. A large-scale rescue would strain public finances already burdened by wartime expenditure, but officials say recapitalisation may be unavoidable if economic conditions worsen further. The central bank and the Finance Ministry have not commented on the possibility of bailouts.