BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

30/05/2008

Belarus to sell Mezhtorgbank to Russia's Alfa Group

MINSK, May 30 (Reuters) - Belarus has agreed to sell its state Mezhtorgbank to the Russian private equity group Alfa, the deputy chairman of Belarus's central bank Nikolai Luzgin said on Friday.

"A few days ago the president decided to sell Mezhtorgbank to Russia's Alfa Group," Luzgin told a conference.

Luzgin later told reporters the central bank will sell its 39 percent stake in Mezhtorgbank at "around $12 million."

Apart from the central bank's stake, Alfa Group's Alfa-Bank, Russia's largest private bank by assets, wants to buy shares from other shareholders, most of which are state enterprises, to bring its share to 90 percent.

The banking sector in the former Soviet republic of Belarus has been growing rapidly on the back of rising loan demand from corporate and retail customers, but the state remains a dominant player, controlling four out of the five leading lenders.

Russia's banks present on the Belarus' market include Russia's No. 2 bank VTB VTBq.L, which controls Slavneftebank, as well as state VEB and Gazprom bank, the banking arm of Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom (GAZP.MM: Quote, Profile, Research), which own BelVnesheconombank and BelGazprombank, respectively.

Belarus plans to sell control in its two largest state banks and minority shares in several other large banks to foreign investors this year. (Reporting by Andrei Makhovsky, writing by Tanya Mosolova; Editing by David Cowell)

Source:

http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKL3093458120080530

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