Central and Eastern Europe regional awards
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Best Bank: Alfa Bank |
Sberbank and VTB have captured most of the headlines in recent months with their $8 billion-plus stock offerings, but it is Alfa Bank that is the real deal in the fast-growing Russian banking market. Alfa has a true universal banking franchise, with well-established retail, corporate and investment banking arms, and although its branch network is much smaller that those of either Sberbank or VTB it nevertheless boasts a true nationwide reach that enables it to take full advantage of the strong economic growth in Russia’s far-flung regions. The bank can also lay claim to a number of impressive capital market transactions, with a series of well-received debt issues at home and abroad in both plain vanilla and structured credit formats. In particular, the bank’s $400 million Eurobond in September 2006 was its largest ever and provided confirmation that the bank is well regarded by international bond investors. Thanks to the backing of the Alfa Group, the bank has a strong financial sponsor, which is committed to supporting its further expansion in the face of growing competition from domestic and international banks.