Maxim Nogotkov, the main owner of Svyaznoy Bank, confirmed that he searches for the investors that would be ready to develop the bank strategically. He received the proposals in writing on Saturday November the 15th. Wherein, he claimed that he doesn’t consider the option of the bank’s rehabilitation.
In his interview to VedomostiNogotkov said the following: “We believe that Svyaznoy Bank has an excellent platform to take 10—15% of the market of credit-debit cards, and now we are taking approximately 3%. That is why we are searching for people who are interested in this business and who understand this reality. Of course, the task has complicated for us over the past week. But we have two proposals from major Russian financial institutions”. Nogotkov also claimed that he didn’t and doesn’t consider any variants connected with the rehabilitation and clarified that these are private investors who have investments in large Russian banks.
According to him, the negotiation about the bank’s fortune began in mid-September (before the opportunity to deal with MTS, included into AFC Systema had been discussed). Nogotkov recognized that the deal conditions worsened in the investors’ proposals received on Saturday in comparison with those that had been discussed a month ago.
In Nogotkov’s opinion, the bank must interact with Svyaznoy retailer and its new investors- Onexim Group and NPF Blagosostoyaniye. Nogotkov said it is clear that this transaction should be batch, and it is obvious that it works only together, otherwise the bank has a negative value. He recognized that the six-year agreement on cooperation between Svyaznoy and Svyaznoy Bank, which was prepared within the framework of the transaction with MTS to build a market rerlationship between the retailer and the bank and that must be implemented in the transaction between Onexim and Blagosostoyaniye, is not yet signed.
Nogotkov says that Onexim and Blagosostoyaniye should be interested in such agreement because Svyaznoy Bank pays market commissions to the retailer. Moreover, Svyaznoy Bank and Svyaznoy have quite advanced payment system that has been built for ages, payment and integrated POS, mobile Banking, Internet banking, uniform relationship with payment systems and contractors. He also explained that the payment integration between Svyaznoy and the bank is deep and good, and their mobile Banking and Internet banking enter the “top five” best in the country. It means that the interdependence is rather high.
Nogotkov continues: “Different investors look at the same business in a different way. The cash flow is very important for them: if it is positive, we multiply it by those or other multipliers and look how much this business costs. If the cash flow is negative, then it is already an obligation, but not an asset. This is the position of Onexim and Blagosostoyaniye: if Svyaznoy Bank is an obligation, so let Maxim be responsible for it himself. But there are people who regard Svyaznoy, Enter, Svyaznoy Bank in a completely different way- for example, as a unique opportunity to build the biggest Russian online- retailer”.
Answering the question if it is possible to initiate the rehabilitation of the bank without its consent, Maxim Nogotkov said: “All the CB’s will. It can close, rehabilitate, deny a license of any bank anytime. Anytime the CB can withdraw the license without any special explanation. He may say: “The proper development of Svyaznoy Bank is so-and-so, and the year 2011 taught me that it is impossible to disagree with such point of view”.
