Austria's RBI to 'drastically' shrink business in Russia
Under heavy US and ECB pressure, Raiffeisen cuts Russia business
Sale or spinoff of Russia unit faces numerous hurdles
Bank unsure if it will be able to extract assets from Russia
Recasts throughout with CEO comments to analysts
By Alexandra Schwarz-Goerlich and Tom Sims
VIENNA, July 30 (Reuters) -Austria's Raiffeisen Bank International RBIV.VI, the biggest Western bank in Russia, believes a sale of 60% of its business there is the most likely scenario as it seeks to withdraw from the market, its CEO said on Tuesday.
RBI has been under pressure from authorities on both sides of the Atlantic to reduce its large footprint in Russia following the war with Ukraine, part of an effort to isolate Russia by reinforcing sanctions on banking and choking off access to Western goods.
The Vienna-based bank has been saying for more than two years that it will try to sell or spin off its giant Russian division, but faces numerous hurdles, not least the likelihood that, like other Western firms that have left, it will be forced to surrender a substantial portion of its assets.
"Currently we assume that the highest probability would be that we can sell around 60%, so we will have to keep 40%," the bank's chief executive, Johann Strobl, told analysts after publishing the bank's earnings.
He provided no further details, but said it was uncertain whether RBI would manage to extract funds it has generated from Russia. He also said any deal needed approval from Russian authorities, the European Central Bank, Austria's regulator and the U.S. Treasury.
After RBI said in April that it would be required by the ECB to further decrease its business in Russia - like its Italian peer UniCredit - Strobl said it would stop most new lending and charge high maintenance fees to discourage deposits.
It will also refuse deposits from any financial institutions other than subsidiaries of Western banks.
RBI's shares traded more than 5% higher afterthe bank reported a 14% year on year rise in second quarter consolidated profit to 661 million euros ($715 million), beating analysts' consensus forecast of 523 million euros.
Erste Group Research said it was sticking to its positive recommendation and that RBI's business excluding Russia was "doing well and remains substantially undervalued".
RBI generated half of its post-tax profit in Russia during the first six months of the year, but those earnings stay with the local subsidiary because of Western sanctions.
In May, after intense U.S. pressure, RBI dropped a bid for a 1.5 billion euro industrial stake linked to Russian tycoon Oleg Deripaska, part of a plan designed to unlock its funds frozen in Russia.
($1 = 0.9240 euros)
Raiffeisen Bank International's shares https://reut.rs/3Ylahf7
editing by Rachel More, Kirsten Donovan, Miranda Murray, Susan Fenton and Kevin Liffey
Activos relacionados
Últimas noticias
Descargo de responsabilidades: Cada una de las entidades de XM Group proporciona un servicio de solo ejecución y acceso a nuestra plataforma de trading online, permitiendo a una persona ver o usar el contenido disponible en o a través del sitio web, sin intención de cambiarlo ni ampliarlo. Dicho acceso y uso están sujetos en todo momento a: (i) Términos y Condiciones; (ii) Advertencias de riesgo; y (iii) Descargo completo de responsabilidades. Por lo tanto, dicho contenido se proporciona exclusivamente como información general. En particular, por favor tenga en cuenta que, los contenidos de nuestra plataforma de trading online no son ni solicitud ni una oferta para entrar a realizar transacciones en los mercados financieros. Operar en cualquier mercado financiero implica un nivel de riesgo significativo para su capital.
Todo el material publicado en nuestra plataforma de trading online tiene únicamente fines educativos/informativos y no contiene –y no debe considerarse que contenga– asesoramiento ni recomendaciones financieras, tributarias o de inversión, ni un registro de nuestros precios de trading, ni una oferta ni solicitud de transacción con instrumentos financieros ni promociones financieras no solicitadas.
Cualquier contenido de terceros, así como el contenido preparado por XM, como por ejemplo opiniones, noticias, investigaciones, análisis, precios, otras informaciones o enlaces a sitios de terceros que figuran en este sitio web se proporcionan “tal cual”, como comentarios generales del mercado y no constituyen un asesoramiento en materia de inversión. En la medida en que cualquier contenido se interprete como investigación de inversión, usted debe tener en cuenta y aceptar que dicho contenido no fue concebido ni elaborado de acuerdo con los requisitos legales diseñados para promover la independencia en materia de investigación de inversiones y, por tanto, se considera como una comunicación comercial en virtud de las leyes y regulaciones pertinentes. Por favor, asegúrese de haber leído y comprendido nuestro Aviso sobre investigación de inversión no independiente y advertencia de riesgo en relación con la información anterior, al que se puede acceder aquí.