Raiffeisen Bank decided to sell or withdraw from the group of the Russian “daughter”
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Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) has decided to sell the Russian business or withdraw it from the group’s perimeter. About it says in an application on the website of a credit institution.
“The RBI Group will continue to work on transactions that could result in the sale or spin-off of Raiffeisenbank in Russia from the group’s perimeter,” the statement said.
It is noted that the RBI is consulting “with the relevant competent authorities” on possible transactions. The group clarified that RBI will continue to carry out some banking operations in Russia. At the same time, RBI will continue to reduce activity in the country. In particular, the bank plans to reduce loans and the volume of operations in foreign currency.
In mid-March, the Der Standard newspaper, citing data from the Falter portal, wrote that RBI was considering an option for an asset swap with the Russian Sberbank. The scheme provides that Sberbank will receive RBI assets in Russia, while the Austrian group will receive assets of a Russian bank in Europe. The publication claimed that such a scenario is being developed by Raiffeisen managers, headed by the group’s CEO Johann Strobl.
RBI is considering different options for the fate of its Russian business against the backdrop of pressure from the US Treasury and the European Central Bank (ECB) on the credit institution.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) in January launched an investigation into the business of the Russian branch of RBI and requested information about the bank’s risks in Russia, as well as in the Donbass, Ukraine and Syria, including transactions and activities of certain clients, Reuters wrote. . The bank noted that they are cooperating with OFAC and that they have “mechanisms to comply with sanctions.”
The Austrian Treasury later called the U.S. sanctions body’s investigation into the RBI “a normal process.” They added that this is not a concern in Vienna. March 24 Reuters learned about about the requirement of the ECB to Raiffeisenbank to leave the Russian market.
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