(Bloomberg) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is boosting the economies of Central Asia as people and companies from his country flee to the region. 

Central Asia will probably grow 5% this year and next, even as Russia’s economy will shrink this year by 1.5% and grow 1% in 2024, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development said on Tuesday. 

Companies leaving Russia are setting up in Central Asia as sanctions upend trade flows and exports in the region boom. About 15,500 businesses in Kazakhstan now have Russian capital, double the number from a year ago, with Kyrgyzstan seeing a similar surge, according to EBRD Chief Economist Beata Javorcik.

“These countries are benefiting from an influx of capital as Russians are moving their savings abroad and Russian companies are setting up there,” Javorcik said in an interview. “The people who are crossing the border are people who are educated, who are well off, and the Central Asian countries are making it easy for them to work there.”

Kazakhstan’s economy is forecast to expand 3.9% this year, while Kyrgyzstan’s will grow 7%, according to the EBRD. 

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