FACTBOX-Banks step up expansion in Russia http://today.reuters.com/news/articleinvesting.aspx?type=bondsNews&storyID=2006-09-21T152110Z_01_L21437205_RTRIDST_0_FINANCIAL-BANKS-RUSSIA-FACTBOX.XML
Thu Sep 21, 2006
LONDON, Sept 21 (Reuters) - Most big investment banks have operations in Russia, but some have been expanding and investing more heavily in the past two years to capitalise on the country's natural resources boom and burgeoning corporate sector.
Russian equity capital markets deals, for example, including intial public offerings, have totalled nearly $10 billion so far this year, up 47 percent on the total for the whole of last year, according to finance industry data provider Dealogic.
On the retail and commercial banking side, eight of the world's top 20 banks already have a presence in Russia.
Citigroup (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research), for example, has a Russian subsidiary, while Italy's UniCredito (CRDI.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) controls Moscow International Bank.
Germany's Commerzbank (CBKG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research), for instance, is set to take a 15 percent stake in Promsvyazbank next month, with a view to eventually increasing its stake to more than 50 percent of the Russian bank.
French bank Societe Generale (SOGN.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) has 10 percent of Rosbank and 100 percent of SKT Bank.
Austria's Raiffeisen International (RIBH.VI: Quote, Profile, Research) bought Impexbank earlier in 2006.
The following lists some of the major investment banks' more recent activity:
** Credit Suisse (CSGN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research) in September announced the launch of a wealth management operation in Moscow.
** Goldman Sachs (GS.N: Quote, Profile, Research) in August was granted a licence to trade securities in Russia.
** Italian bank Unicredit's (CRDI.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) > central European investment banking arm CA IB is working on a deal to buy Russia's independent Aton brokerage, according to sources close to the situation (For more details please double click on [ID:nL30167992])
** Troika Dialog, another independent Russian broker, is being eyed by JP Morgan (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Citigroup (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research) (For more details please double click on [ID:nL05569295] and [ID:nL20914912])
** Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) bought the 60 percent of Russian broker United Financial Group that it did not already own in December 2005.
UBS (UBSN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research) took full control of UBS Brunswick, its Russian joint venture, in 2004. The Swiss bank received a banking licence from the Russian central bank in June.
Lehman Brothers (LEH.N: Quote, Profile, Research) has a joint venture with Renaissance Capital, the Russian investment bank. (For the latest story on banks expanding in Russia please double click on [L21454837]
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