By Andrei Skvarsky. The chief executive of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), Kirill Dmitriev, has suggested issuing infrastructure bonds, setting up index funds and investing much of the pension system’s money as key ways of boosting the liquidity of Russia’s stock market. Infrastructure bonds “could be used to finance development of the Far East… Continue Reading
Micex-RTS likely to stay shut from Dec 29 to Jan 7
Micex-RTS top brass have recommended that Moscow’s stock exchange stay closed for 10 days from December 29 to January 7, a period practically coinciding with Russia’s national non-working season. However, as a general principle, the top management recommended keeping trade going at Micex-RTS on Russian public non-working days if they make up more than one… Continue Reading
RenCap makes two promotions in Africa equity products team
By Andrei Skvarsky. Renaissance Capital has announced two promotions in its Africa-focused equity products group, with Ali Khalpey being appointed as head of South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa equities and Stanley Kariuki as head of equities for Kenya. Khalpey, who joined Renaissance in January 2010 and is based in Johannesburg, was head of equities for… Continue Reading
Russian banks short of business developers, CIB senior managers
By Andrei Skvarsky. Professionals who can fill positions of business development director and corporate and investment banking senior manager are some of those that Russian banks have the highest demand for, according to international recruitment company Antal. There are shortages of managers in various sectors of Russia’s economy, according to a statement from the headhunter.… Continue Reading
Gazprombank hires Troika Dialog’s DePoy as equity strategist
By Andrei Skvarsky. Gazprombank, the banking arm of gas giant Gazprom and Russia’s third-biggest lender by assets, has hired Erik DePoy from Troika Dialog as equity strategist. DePoy, who has more than 14 years of experience in the Russian market, spent nearly nine years at Alfa-Bank, first as a research editor and then as equity… Continue Reading
Russian Central Bank to sell part of stake in Sberbank
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s Central Bank plans to sell off some of its shares in Sberbank, a move that would still leave the overseer of Russia’s monetary system in control of the country’s biggest lender. Up to 1,712,994,999 ordinary shares, which make up 7.58% of Sberbank’s capital, would go on sale, according to a statement from… Continue Reading
Otkritie hires Micex-RTS chief Aganbegyan as CEO
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s Otkritie Financial Corp has hired Ruben Aganbegyan, who is stepping down as president of Moscow’s Micex-RTS stock exchange, as its chief executive. An Otkritie spokeswoman confirmed the appointment to EmergingMarkets.me. Aganbegyan replaces Vadim Belyaev, who will become president of Nomos-Bank, a Moscow institution being taken over by Otkritie in a deal… Continue Reading
BCS Bank appoints Emil Yusupov as CEO
By Andrei Skvarsky. BCS (BrokerCreditService), the Moscow-based investment banking group, has promoted head of retail Emil Yusupov to the role of chief executive of BCS Bank, its lender unit. Yusupov held senior jobs at Russia’s Absolut Bank, state-owned insurer Rosgosstrakh and UralSib group before joining BCS in March 2011. Continue Reading
Micex-RTS president Aganbegyan quitting
By Andrei Skvarsky. Moscow’s Micex-RTS stock exchange is parting company with its president, Ruben Aganbegyan, who carried through a merger project that brought today’s main Russian bourse into being last year. A Micex-RTS statement said Aganbegyan, who pulled off the merger of Moscow’s Micex and RTS exchanges, is resigning with effect from September 25 and… Continue Reading
Russia’s UralSib Bank names Ilkka Salonen as CEO
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s UralSib Bank has named Ilkka Salonen, formerly a deputy chairman of Sberbank and a senior figure at Renaissance Group, as its chief executive. In his new role, Salonen, who was hired from Helsinki-headquartered investment bank Septem Partners, will replace Ildar Muslimov, who has been dismissed by the bank’s supervisory board, according… Continue Reading
RenCap tops LSE International Order Book
By Andrei Skvarsky. Renaissance Capital has topped the London Stock Exchange’s International Order Book ranking for August, increasing its market share to around 10% for the period. RenCap attributes much of this success to its investment in electronic trading and prime brokerage services. “This accomplishment demonstrates the strength of the firm as we continue to… Continue Reading
Otkritie Bank assigned long-term B rating by Fitch
By Andrei Skvarsky. Otkritie Bank, part of Otkritie Financial Corp, last week received a long-term B rating from Fitch with a Rating Watch Positive outlook in what the Moscow-based corporation sees as good going for a lender just two years old. B (‘financial situation varies noticeably’) is the second-highest tier in Fitch’s Non-Investment Grade. Otkritie… Continue Reading
Deutsche Bank's CEEMEA top brass part company with senior figure
By Andrei Skvarsky. Deutsche Bank has parted company with Saleh Romeih, head of central and eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa at the firm’s capital markets and treasury solutions (CMTS) unit. Nizar Al-Bassam, head of markets sales and coverage for the region, has been named as Romeih’s replacement, according to Bloomberg. Romeih is credited with… Continue Reading
Troika Dialog makes two more hires for investment banking team
By Andrei Skvarsky. Troika Dialog has hired Max Kolodkin from Goldman Sachs and Sergei Chinkis from HSBC to co-head its investment banking division. Kolodkin, who was a managing director at Goldman and was involved in deals with major companies such as Coca-Cola and Unilever, will run a consumer and retail trade section, according to Russian… Continue Reading
Abraaj, US govt launch $400m Middle East private equity fund
By Andrei Skvarsky. Abraaj Capital, a leading Middle East private equity firm, is going to set up a $400m fund to boost small- and medium-scale business in North Africa and the Middle East and has signed a $150m deal with the US government to partially finance the project. Egypt is “one of the core target… Continue Reading
Troika Dialog’s brokerage renamed SIB Financial Broker
Troika Dialog’s brokerage unit, Financial Broker Troika Dialog, has changed its name to SIB Financial Broker. The renaming of this and other divisions of Troika is part of the ongoing merger between the Moscow-headquartered investment firm and Sberbank designed to give Russia’s biggest lender an investment banking platform. The broker’s change of name will not… Continue Reading
EXCLUSIVE: Royal Bank of Scotland equity derivatives unit makes first sales hire in Russia
By Andrei Skvarsky. Royal Bank of Scotland’s investor products and equity derivatives (IPED) division has made its first-ever sales hire in Russia, recruiting Peter Krivdin from Renaissance Capital as sales director for Russia and the CIS. “This means we believe in Russia and the CIS as a strong part of our emerging markets operations, thus… Continue Reading
Russia’s Investtradebank raided by police over ‘illegal banking’
Russia’s Investtradebank raided by police over ‘illegal banking’ By Andrei Skvarsky. Investtradebank, a mid-sized Russian lender also known by its Russian name Investtorgbank, had its headquarters and some of its branches in Moscow searched by police on Wednesday in one in a series of raids as part of alleged action to prevent illegal banking. Business… Continue Reading
Russia’s BCS makes four top hires for new London unit
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russian broker BCS has opened a unit in London and made four senior appointments for it. Joseph (Yossi) Dayan was hired as head of markets, Luis Saenz as head of equity and derivatives sales and trading, Mark Cleary as head of sales trading, and Tim Bevan as head of international direct market… Continue Reading
Otkritie CEO tapped for Nomos president as part of takeover
By Andrei Skvarsky. Otkritie Financial Corp’s chief executive and main stakeholder, Vadim Belyayev, has been tapped for president of Nomos-Bank as part of a recent deal that will make Nomos part of the Moscow-headquartered corporation within the next couple of years. Belyayev is likely to receive his new appointment within a month, Russian business daily… Continue Reading
VTB Capital makes two hires for Asia top brass
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s VTB Capital has hired Daren Wong, previously a senior executive at Bank of China in Hong Kong, as head of high yield trading for Asia, and appointed former Merrill Lynch banker Roger Suyama to oversee Indonesia coverage. Wong, who will be based in Hong Kong, headed Morgan Stanley’s unit for Asia… Continue Reading
Top Troika Dialog salesmen move to Sberbank
By Andrei Skvarsky. Sberbank has given top roles in its private banking unit to Alexei Dolgikh and Igor Prokhayev, who have come over from Troika Dialog in a move appearing to be part of the current mutual integration of the two institutions. A Sberbank spokeswoman told EmergingMarkets.me that Dolgikh and Prokhayev, who have worked as… Continue Reading
Otkritie to take over Nomos
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s Otkritie Financial Corp plans to buy out Nomos-Bank, in which it owns a one-fifth stake, in a declared bid to become “the largest independent public financial group in Russia” within the next three years. Otkritie, which plans an initial public offering, said in a statement it has clinched a deal with… Continue Reading
Morgan Stanley parting company with top managers for Russia
By Andrei Skvarsky. Morgan Stanley is parting company with the two top managers of its Russian office, chairman Rair Simonyan and president Elena Titova. Media reports have expressed a surmise that both may join Russian oil major Rosneft. Reuters cited Russian media as saying Titova, who spent around 12 years at Goldman Sachs before joining… Continue Reading
EXCLUSIVE: Merrill’s Korishchenko to become CEO of Russia’s Investbank
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s Investbank has confirmed that it is handing its job of chief executive to Konstantin Korishchenko, who is quitting as Merrill Lynch’s head for Russia. An Investbank spokeswoman told EmergingMarkets.me that Korishchenko’s candidacy had been approved by the supervisory board of the Moscow-based firm but that the appointment procedure would take a… Continue Reading
ING names head of commercial banking in Russia
By Andrei Skvarsky. The Netherlands’ ING Group has appointed its veteran Luc Truyens as head of commercial banking in Russia. Truyens, who takes up his duties on September 3, joined Banque Bruxelles Lambert (BBL) 29 years ago and has stayed at ING since the latter took over the Brussels-headquartered bank in 1998. “With the arrival… Continue Reading
Troika Dialog hires ex-VTB banker to run intl fixed income sales
By Andrei Skvarsky. Troika Dialog has hired Dean Tyler from VTB Capital as head of international fixed income sales. The recruitment of Tyler, who took up his duties this month and is based in Troika’s London office, is part of the Moscow-based brokerage’s current integration with Sberbank that aims to give Russia’s biggest lender a… Continue Reading
GOLDMAN SACHS COMMENT – Russia: The only G20 economy that needs to slow down
By Clemens Grafe, Chief Economist, Goldman Sachs Russia. (Excerpt) Russia’s economy continues to be out of synch with much of the rest of the world: GDP growth has held up at an above-trend pace despite a slowing global economy. That said, we estimate that the output gap has now closed and that the economy will… Continue Reading
EXCLUSIVE: New investment fund going after Russian agriculture’s untapped potential
By Andrei Skvarsky. Three British businessmen have set up a fund to invest in agriculture in Russia and elsewhere in the CIS, turning to a largely neglected industry with vast investment opportunities. Investing in the abysmal infrastructure of Russian agriculture is the chief objective of the fund, which has an equity target of $150m and… Continue Reading