Sberbank's Q4 consumer lending down 30%, official says

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Sberbank's consumer lending dropped by 30% in the fourth quarter, the first deputy CEO of Russia's biggest bank, Kirill Tsaryov, said on Wednesday.

"The volume of consumer loans in the fourth quarter decreased by 30% despite a stable level of demand, due to an increase in the key rate and the introduction by the regulator of restrictions on lending to customers with a high debt burden," Tsaryov said.

Sberbank expects its retail customer portfolio will grow by 4.5 trillion roubles ($48.49 billion) and exceed 22 trillion roubles in 2023.

($1 = 92.8000 roubles)

(Reporting by Elena Fabrichnaya; Writing by Maxim Rodionov; Editing by Christopher Cushing)