Russia’s Gazprombank explores options for Swiss business, including sale

ZURICH, July 8 (Reuters) – Russia’s Gazprombank is exploring strategic alternatives for its Swiss business enterprise, like a doable sale of all or pieces of it, Zurich-centered Gazprombank Switzerland stated on Friday.

Gazprombank (GZPRI.MM) is one of the last remaining channels for financing trade flows concerning Russia and Switzerland due to the fact the other important Russian banking institutions are subject matter to sanctions about Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Its Swiss small business, which employs about 80 people, is predominantly energetic in trade and export financing, including assisting Swiss industrial groups finance exports to Japanese Europe. It also finances the extraction, transportation and processing of raw elements from Russia to Western Europe for commodity traders.

“The Bank at this time expects to conclude the strategic review approach – which includes acquiring an investor if these types of solution is pursued – by the finish of the third quarter of 2022,” it claimed.

Dependent on equity of about 200 million Swiss francs, the bank could be valued at all-around 150 million Swiss francs ($154 million), one particular business resource, who declined to be named, mentioned.

Feasible consumers for components or all of Gazprombank could be economic buyers or other banks, a Gazprombank Switzerland spokesperson mentioned, declining to remark on a valuation.

Commodity traders could also be intrigued in Gazprombank Switzerland, the market supply told Reuters, and the initial opportunity consumers have already expressed desire.

“It is the responsibility of the Board of Directors to regularly assessment the strategic orientation of a lender and to realign the organization product if essential,” the spokesperson explained when requested no matter if current or likely intercontinental sanctions had induced the strategic overview.

Asked about any feasible impact from the Swiss Economical Current market Supervisory Authority FINMA, the lender spokesperson mentioned: “The initiated strategy critique is in the bank’s individual interest and not thanks to external pressure.”

Gazprombank Switzerland was strongly capitalised and operationally perfectly positioned, the spokesperson extra.

According to the hottest publicly readily available facts, Gazprombank Switzerland designed a income of 3 million francs in the initial 50 percent of 2021, down from 4 million in the yr-in the past time period.

Gazprombank is not the only Swiss subsidiary of a big Russian financial institution that might soon modify fingers.

FINMA has eased the limits versus Sberbank (Switzerland) AG (SBER.MM). This would enable the financial institution to minimize its equilibrium sheet in see of a probable sale or modify of ownership, the watchdog mentioned this thirty day period. study more

($1 = .9744 Swiss francs)

Reporting by Oliver Hirt, Producing by Michael Shields, Enhancing by Paul Carrel and Alexander Smith

Our Criteria: The Thomson Reuters Trust Rules.