September 22, 2014 This is bne's Russia banking weekly newsletter, a list of the top stories in region last week. You can receive the list as a plain text or html email or as a pdf file. Manage your delivery options here:http://businessneweurope.eu/users/subs.php BANKER TOP STORY 1. Central Bank continues anti-money laundering campaign 2. Forex borrowers unnerve Poland's establishment 3. Sanctions will increasingly weigh on Russian banks' funding and liquidity profiles (but they will survive) 4. Swift protests Europarliament calls to exclude Russia BANKER NEWS 5. CEE Banks Have $10 Billion FX Loan Risk in CEE: Berenberg 6. Losses of Russian banks increased more than 40% in August 7. Sanctions will increasingly weigh on Russian banks' funding and liquidity profiles (but they will survive) 8. Sberbank feels effect of sanctions — CEO BANKER EE 9. Russian Central Banker Sees No Return to Capital Controls 10. Russian Fin Ministry, CBR mull helping banks on sanctions 11. Russian government agreed to provide $1.55bn to Belarus 12. Sberbank to give вВђ100m sub loan to EU unit BANKER EE - FROM THE DAILIES 13. AFK Sistema, MTS: MTS Bank could receive additional capital injection 14. Austria Says Banks at Risk From Sanctions on Russia 15. Canada Quietly Removes 2 Russian Banks 'Mistakenly' on Sanctions List 16. Funding weak in Aug, retail lending decelerates sharply 17. Privatbank 1H14 IFRS; low visibility BANKER CE - FROM THE DAILIES 18. BNP seeks higher profitability in Poland after acquisition 19. Bank lending to the Czech economy lags in first half 20. Forex loans high on Hungarian parliament's agenda 21. Hungarian PM outlines forex loans schedule 22. Hungarian banking association slams settlements law 23. Hungarian banks must settle refunds by February insists senior Fidesz official 24. Hungarian central bank will assist conversion of џ8bn of FX loans 25. Hungarian minister calls for new era in banking 26. Polish banks Alior and Getin eye Meritum acquisition 27. Press reports on Hungarian PM meetings with bank heads BANKER SE - FROM THE DAILIES 28. Bulgaria: CCB shareholder under house arrest in Belgrade 29. Albanian central bank governor out of jail and under house arrest 30. Chief shareholder of Bulgaria's Corpbank surrenders in Serbia 31. Corpbank Holders Seek Bulgaria Meeting to Draft Bank Plan 32. Turkey: Bank Asya moves to save capital as president calls on watchdog to intervene BANKER TOP STORY 1. Central Bank continues anti-money laundering campaign bne September 17, 2014 Russia's central bank has revoked the licence of two more small banks for involvement in shadow economy activities and money laundering, the latest in dozens of small banks to lose their licenses. One of these banks, Bank24.ru was involved in "dubious operations with large volumes of cash and non-cash funds," according to a central bank press release. The bank was 276th largest, and part of a group of six similarly sized banks. The central bank also September 16 revoked the licence of Intrastbank, Russia's 247th largest, for failure to pay creditors. September 11 the central bank revoked the licence of Trastovyi republicanskii bank for performing dubious operations connected with moving around $300m abroad January-August 2014. Since heading the central bank in march 2014, central bank chairperson Elvira Nabiullina has revoked the licence of dozens of the tiny banks that make up the bulk of Russia's over 1000 banks, and of which many are believed to participate in money laundering and provision of tax evasion services. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnerussia-daily-list/central-bankcontinues-anti-money-laundering-campaign 2. Forex borrowers unnerve Poland's establishment Jan Cienski in Warsaw September 19, 2014 Poland's dalliance with foreign currency mortgages, especially those denominated in Swiss francs, continues to cast a pall over the country's banking system as worries grow about the rising strength of the franc due to rising political turmoil in Europe. As elections loom, irate borrowers of such loans also make a tempting target audience for populist politicians. Forex loans in Swiss francs were enormously popular in Poland before the economic crisis of 2008, with about 80% of all mortgages being denominated in foreign currencies. The reason was that Swiss interest rates were significantly lower than those set by the National Bank of Poland; about 700,000 borrowers succumbed to the temptation. Forex loans now account for 48% of outstanding mortgages. The risks of that sort of a strategy became apparent after the failure of Lehman Brothers, when the zloty's value against the Swiss franc plummeted. Most borrowers had taken out mortgages when the franc cost about PLN2.4 - the rate briefly shot up to PLN4. Today it's around PLN3.5. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/forexborrowers-unnerve-polands-establishment 3. Sanctions will increasingly weigh on Russian banks' funding and liquidity profiles (but they will survive) Standard & Poor's September 19, 2014 Sanctions imposed by the EU and U.S. on state-related Russian banks following the escalation of geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine could gradually harm the funding and liquidity profiles of the country's banks, in Standard & Poor's Ratings Services view. EU sanctions prohibit the purchase, sale of, or dealing in securities and money-market instruments with a maturity exceeding 30 days by major stateowned financial institutions: Sberbank, VTB, Bank of Moscow, Gazprombank, Russian Agricultural Bank, and Vnesheconombank. These measures complement U.S. sanctions that apply similar prohibitions for U.S. citizens and companies within the U.S. We believe that the credit quality of Russian banks will not suffer immediately from the restrictions on tapping EU and U.S. capital markets. Our analysis suggests the sector has enough liquidity to refinance its international debt falling due until the end of 2015. However, the longer restrictions on capital market access last, the larger funding imbalances will become, potentially calling into question the banks' capacity to adequately finance the economy. Furthermore, we think the indirect consequences of the sanctions are likely to have a more pronounced longer-term impact. In particular, the erosion in investor confidence, a general perception of higher risk of financing Russian banks, plus the possibility of increased flights of capital and weaker economic growth in Russia, could be more painful for the sector as a whole than the immediate consequences. The banks will also face higher funding costs. We consider the immediate impact of Western sanctions to be manageable for Russian banks because their reliance on funding from international capital markets is limited. б However, prolonged sanctions, accompanied by an economic slowdown and capital outflow, would drag on the funding and liquidity profiles of all Russian banks by raising the cost of borrowing and cutting customer confidence. б Retail deposits, which have been key in building banks' funding bases since the 2008-2009 financial crisis, are now also stagnating, so that corporate deposit stability is becoming critical to banks' funding profiles. б We believe banks will increasingly rely on central bank funding, which would alleviate immediate refinancing squeezes but will ultimately weaken their funding and liquidity profiles. We therefore believe that funding and liquidity risks, together with deteriorating asset quality, will be the main triggers for negative rating actions on Russian banks over the next few quarters. More than two-thirds of our outlooks on Russian banks are already negative. The longer sanctions last, the more acute funding imbalances and liquidity pressures could become. <b>Banks Will Likely Absorb The Short-Term Costs Of Sanctions</b> More than 50% of Russia's banking sector assets are directly affected by external sanctions, aimed at restricting these banks' access to external capital markets. We nevertheless believe that the immediate impact of the sanctions on banks will be limited because the Russian banking sector doesn't rely strongly on external funding (see chart 1). According to our analysis, Russian banks will need to refinance about US$57 billion of external debt in 2014-2015, which we believe they will be able to cover with their liquidity reserves. We also expect that the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) would provide funding support to the affected banks, if needed. In the first eight months of 2014, Russian banks raised about $27 billion of funding from the internal and external capital markets--about 6% less than over the same period of the previous year. Yet, notably, they have placed only $9 billion international issues so far in 2014 versus $16 billion in the corresponding period of last year. We believe this highlights deteriorating investor confidence in Russian borrowers. We expect that Russian banks will be able to raise only modest amounts on capital markets over the coming quarters to the end of 2015 if the current situation persists and the largest state-related banks are less able to access the external markets. We nevertheless believe that the amounts the largest banks' raised in the first half of 2014 will sufficiently meet their funding needs for the rest of 2014 and through 2015 given that lending demand from Russian corporate clients is falling and retail lending is also slowing. //IMG:0914_Russia_bank_debt_redemption_external_schedule.jpg:IMG// 4. Swift protests Europarliament calls to exclude Russia bne September 19, 2014 International payments system SWIFT has criticized a recommendation by the European parliament to exclude Russia as infringing its basic rights. "The singling out of SWIFT in this manner interferes disproportionately with SWIFT's fundamental right to conduct business and its right to property. It also constitutes discriminatory and unequal treatment. Explicitly mentioning SWIFT in a European Parliament resolution of this kind on such an international sensitive matter also creates immense damage to our company's reputation," the press release read. One of thirty-six non-binding recommendations passed by the European Parliament in response to Russian aggression in Ukraine September 17 "calls for the EU to consider excluding Russia from civil nuclear cooperation and the Swift system." Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnerussia-daily-list/swift-protestseuroparliament-calls-exclude-russia BANKER NEWS 5. CEE Banks Have $10 Billion FX Loan Risk in CEE: Berenberg Bloomberg September 19, 2014 Banks in eastern Europe may face 8 billion euros ($10 billion) of losses on loans in foreign currencies, according to a study by Berenberg Bank analysts. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/cee-bankshave-10-billion-fx-loan-risk-cee-berenberg 6. Losses of Russian banks increased more than 40% in August bne September 20, 2014 Losses of Russian banks increased 43% in August 2014 compared to July and reached RUB60.7bn as of September 1, according to the Banking Sector Review published by the Bank of Russia on September 15. In August, the number of loss-making credit institutions decreased by one to 217 versus 218 a month earlier, the Bank of Russia notes. The number of profit-making banks decreased to 650 in August from 657 in July. Total profit of the banking system increased to RUB652.7bn (by 17.5%) as of September 1 compared to the figures as of August 1, 2014. 7. Sanctions will increasingly weigh on Russian banks' funding and liquidity profiles (but they will survive) S&P September 19, 2014 Sanctions imposed by the EU and U.S. on state-related Russian banks following the escalation of geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine could gradually harm the funding and liquidity profiles of the country's banks, in Standard & Poor's Ratings Services view. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnerussia-daily-list/sanctions-willincreasingly-weigh-russian-banks-funding-and-liquidity 8. Sberbank feels effect of sanctions — CEO ITAR-TASS September 19, 2014 Russian savings bank Sberbank feels the impact of sanctions and ponders possible transition to domestic market of borrowings, Sberbank CEO German Gref said in an interview with TV news channel Rossiya 24. “Sanctions certainly affect conditions for business. As for financial sector and banking sector, we feel it to the full extent. In fact, all foreign markets are closed today and sweeping work is being done to shift to domestic sources of funding,” Gref said. Read more here: http://en.itar-tass.com/economy/750259 BANKER EE 9. Russian Central Banker Sees No Return to Capital Controls Bloomberg September 18, 2014 Russia's central bank is looking to buttress its financial system against sanctions over the Ukraine conflict without returning to capital controls abandoned eight years ago, the bank's first deputy chairman said. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnerussia-daily-list/russian-centralbanker-sees-no-return-capital-controls 10. Russian Fin Ministry, CBR mull helping banks on sanctions bne September 16, 2014 Russia's Finance Ministry and the central bank are discussing helping the banking sector, which lacks access to Western long-term borrowing markets after the European and U.S. sanctions, Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseyev said, according to Prime. вАЬWe are considering this issue; we are discussing this with the central bank. But firstly, this is an issue to be solved by the central bank because we do not have foreign currencies," Moiseyev said. There is a structural deficit of U.S. dollars on the Russian market already, he said. Moiseyev also added, the government decided to postpone the deadline for Visa and MasterCard to start providing all processing services in Russia using capacities on the Russian territory. The deadline was previously slated for October 31. The payment systems did not manage to find a partner for processing in Russia by the beginning of September, Visa and MasterCard said earlier. 11. Russian government agreed to provide $1.55bn to Belarus bne September 16, 2014 Russia's government has approved a draft agreement to provide a $1.55bn state loan to Belarus in 2014, according to a statement published Tuesday on the government's legal information Web site. Belarus will use the money to redeem and service its state debt and increase gold and foreign exchange reserves. The loan is to be repaid in 20 equal semiannual tranches, with the first payment to be transferred on January 15, 2019. 12. Sberbank to give вВђ100m sub loan to EU unit bne September 18, 2014 Russia's biggest lender Sberbank will give its E.U. affiliate Sberbank Europe a 10year 100 million euro subordinated loan, the bank said in a statement seen by Prime. The interest rate of the loan was not disclosed. BANKER EE - FROM THE DAILIES 13. AFK Sistema, MTS: MTS Bank could receive additional capital injection UralSib September 17, 2014 MTS Bank could double its chartered capital ... The Central Bank of Russia has registered a new share issue from AFK Sistema (SSA LI - Not Rated) subsidiary MTS Bank, Interfax reported on Friday. MTS Bank may place 3,792,658 shares via closed subscription, each with a par value of RUB500. This would double the bank's chartered capital. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnerussia-daily-list/afk-sistema-mts-mtsbank-could-receive-additional-capital-injection 14. Austria Says Banks at Risk From Sanctions on Russia Moscow Times September 19, 2014 Austrian banks are most at risk from potential sanctions by Russia against Vienna in a tit-for-tat escalation with the West over the political crisis in Ukraine, Austrian Finance Minister Hans Joerg Schelling told a newspaper. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnerussia-daily-list/austria-says-banksrisk-sanctions-russia 15. Canada Quietly Removes 2 Russian Banks 'Mistakenly' on Sanctions List Moscow Times September 19, 2014 Canada, one of the harshest critics of Russia's involvement in Ukraine, this week quietly canceled sanctions against Expobank and RosEnergoBank, two small Russian banks on which it imposed the measures earlier this year. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnerussia-daily-list/canada-quietlyremoves-2-russian-banks-mistakenly-sanctions-list 16. Funding weak in Aug, retail lending decelerates sharply Alfa Bank September 17, 2014 The CBR yesterday released August banking stats that raise concerns on both the liabilities and asset sides. First, retail deposit growth remained weak at 8% y/y, reflecting the withdrawal of FX deposits from the banking system, which is a trend that is reinforced by the fear of sanctions against Russian banks. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnerussia-daily-list/funding-weak-augretail-lending-decelerates-sharply 17. Privatbank 1H14 IFRS; low visibility VTB Capital September 19, 2014 Privatbank has posted unaudited 1H14 financials on its website. Since not much has changed in provisions or the capital position (which to some extent might be a result of delayed loss recognition), the results mainly show the effects of hryvna devaluation on P&L (near-zero net profit), FX asset revaluation and liquidity (deposit outflow vs. NBU funding). Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bneukraine-daily-list/privatbank-1h14ifrs-low-visibility BANKER CE - FROM THE DAILIES 18. BNP seeks higher profitability in Poland after acquisition Reuters September 19, 2014 BNP Paribas aims to deliver double-digit profitability in Poland by 2017 after the acquisition of Bank BGZ, on Tuesday said Jean-Paul Sabet, deputy head of international retail banking at France's biggest listed bank. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/bnp-seekshigher-profitability-poland-after-acquisition 19. Bank lending to the Czech economy lags in first half KB September 19, 2014 The Czech economy has been doing very well since the beginning of this year. External demand has helped Czech industrial production, and construction output will benefit from the nascent fiscal expansion and the revival of the housing market. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/banklending-czech-economy-lags-first-half 20. Forex loans high on Hungarian parliament's agenda MTI September 19, 2014 Parliament will start its autumn season with a two-day session on Monday, and discuss measures to resolve the problem of forex borrowers among the first issues. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/forex-loanshigh-hungarian-parliaments-agenda 21. Hungarian PM outlines forex loans schedule Commerzbank September 18, 2014 PM Orban summarised the implications of latest FX borrower legislation in his Friday interview: banks are to complete compensation to borrowers by end-H1 2015 (now extended from original guidance of end-2014), once the Budapest Court have ruled on their respective defences. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/hungarianpm-outlines-forex-loans-schedule 22. Hungarian banking association slams settlements law MTI September 19, 2014 Hungary's 10 million citizens could lose far more than a few hundred thousand borrowers may gain thanks to the bank settlements law, Hungary's Banking Association said. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/hungarianbanking-association-slams-settlements-law 23. Hungarian banks must settle refunds by February insists senior Fidesz official MTI September 18, 2014 Banks in Hungary must settle with borrowers by the end of February in the case of contracts which the courts have deemed unfair, Fidesz's group leader said. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/hungarianbanks-must-settle-refunds-february-insists-senior-fidesz 24. Hungarian central bank will assist conversion of џ8bn of FX loans Portfolio.hu September 18, 2014 The Hungarian central bank is ready to tap its foreign exchange reserves to a certain extent to use it for the conversion of forex loans to forints, said MЗrton Nagy, managing director of the MNB. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/hungarianminister-calls-new-era-banking 25. Hungarian minister calls for new era in banking MTI September 18, 2014 After banks have compensated clients for their unfair practices, a new era must begin for Hungary's banking system, the justice minister said. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/hungarianminister-calls-new-era-banking 26. Polish banks Alior and Getin eye Meritum acquisition Erste September 18, 2014 Based on press information, Alior and Getin Holding or Getin Noble Bank are interested in the acquisition of Meritum Bank. The information has not been confirmed by Alior Bank or other potential buyers. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/polish-banksalior-and-getin-eye-meritum-acquisition 27. Press reports on Hungarian PM meetings with bank heads Erste September 19, 2014 The press reports that the PM had negotiations with some bank CEOs. The press speculates that: (i) the state wants to buy additional banks; (ii) there is talk on FX conversion. Read more here: http://www.bne.eu/page/bnecentral-europe-daily-list/pressreports-hungarian-pm-meetings-bank-heads BANKER SE - FROM THE DAILIES 28. Bulgaria: CCB shareholder under house arrest in Belgrade bne September 18, 2014 A Serbian court has put Tsvetan Vassilev, the largest shareholder in Bulgaria’s Corporate Commercial Bank (CCB) under house arrest. Vassilev is wanted by the Bulgarian authorities in connection to the liquidity crisis at the bank, while Sofia is in talks with other shareholders to secure a bailout package. Vassiliev voluntarily presented himself to Belgrade police on September 16 - shortly before he was due to be arrested. A Serbian court ordered that he remain at his residence in Belgrade and present himself to the authorities every day.http://www.prb.bg/main/bg/News/4821/Bulgaria’s state prosecutor’s office</a> says it received a fax from the Serbian interior ministry on September 17 informing officials of Vasilev’s arrest and the court decision. Vassilev has been indicated for misappropriation of funds. In August Interpol issued an international warrant for his arrest. According to Bulgarian press reports, procedures for his extradition to Bulgaria are expected to be carried out within the next 18 to 40 days. Vassiliev left Bulgaria after a run on CCB, Bulgaria’s fifth largest bank, in June. The Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) took the bank and its subsidiary Victoria Bank (previously Credit Agricole Bulgaria) under administration for an initial period of three months, which has since been extended until November 20. The BNB said in ahttp://www.bnb.bg/PressOffice/POPressReleases/POPRDate/PR_20140916_ENSepte mber 16 statement</a> that between October 28 and November 20, “an opportunity will be provided to the shareholders and other potential investors, who have expressed interest in the restructuring of KTB AD, to make a proposal containing specific financial and legal commitments for provision of capital and liquidity.” The Bulgarian caretaker government is already in negotiations with major shareholders in CCB in an attempt to secure a bailout package for the bank. On September 17, interim Finance Minister Rumen Porozhanov said that he will meet representatives of EPIC Financial Consulting, a Vienna-based firm acting for the main shareholders in CCB, this week. In addition to Vassilev, the bank’s main shareholders are Luxembourg-registered Bulgarian Acquisition Co., which is controlled by Oman’s sovereign wealth fund the State General Reserve Fund of Oman, and Russia’s VTB Group. Sofia has sought to ensure that the contagion does not spread to other banks. However, the crisis in the banking sector has had a wider impact on Bulgaria’s economy,http://www.ebrd.com/pages/news/press/2014/140918e.shtmlEuropean Bank for Reconstruction and Development's (EBRD) latest economic forecast</a> released on September 18. 2014 has also been a year of political turmoil for Bulgaria, where the second snap elections in under two years will take place on October 5. The EBRD has responded by lowering its forecast for Bulgaria from 1.9% to 1.5%, though it does not expect the banking crisis to have a long-term negative effect. “[T]he longer term impact of the financial sector turmoil was likely to be limited by prompt action by the authorities, including the stated intention to opt into Europe’s Single Supervisory Mechanism for the banking system,” the report says. 29. Albanian central bank governor out of jail and under house arrest Reuters September 17, 2014 Albania's central bank governor Ardian Fullani was released from jail on Monday and placed under house arrest awaiting trial in connection with the theft of millions of dollars from the bank's vault. Fullani was arrested on Sept. 5 on charges of abuse of office, five weeks after a bank employee admitted stealing 713 million leks ($6.6 million) in cash from the bank's vault. Read more here: http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/09/15/albania-cenbank-arrestidINL6N0RG2DS20140915 30. Chief shareholder of Bulgaria's Corpbank surrenders in Serbia Reuters September 17, 2014 The chief shareholder of Bulgaria's Corporate Commercial Bank (Corpbank) surrendered to police in neighbouring Serbia on Tuesday on charges of embezzlement in the wake of the EU member's worst banking crisis since the 1990s. Tsvetan Vassilev's lawyer confirmed his client's surrender in the Serbian capital, Belgrade. Read more here: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/09/16/uk-bulgaria-corpbanksurrender-idUKKBN0HB14G20140916 31. Corpbank Holders Seek Bulgaria Meeting to Draft Bank Plan Bloomberg September 15, 2014 Corporate Commercial Bank AD’s key shareholders and prospective investors are seeking a meeting in Sofia next week to gain access to the books of Bulgaria’s fourth-biggest lender and draft a plan to rescue it. A vehicle owned by the bank’s founder Tsvetan Vassilev, the State General Reserve Fund of Oman and Russia’s VTB Group (VTBR) plan to recapitalize and restructure Corpbank, their adviser, Vienna-based Epic Financial Consulting, said in an e-mailed statement today. The owners are also working with new outside investors, Epic said in the statement. Read more here: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-12/corpbank-holdersseek-bulgaria-meeting-to-draft-bank-plan.html 32. Turkey: Bank Asya moves to save capital as president calls on watchdog to intervene Hurriyet Daily News September 17, 2014 The Turkish government has said the ball is in the court of the country’s banking watchdog, regarding Islamic lender Bank Asya’s efforts to recover its collapsed capital base. “There are steps that should be taken by the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency [BDDK],” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sept. 15, speaking to reporters on his return plane back to Turkey from Qatar. Read more here: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/bank-asya-moves-to-savecapital-as-president-calls-on-watchdog-tointervene.aspx?pageID=238&nID=71796&NewsCatID=346
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