Central and Eastern Europe regional awards
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Best Bank: Belagroprombank |
The two largest banks in Belarus are Priorbank and Belarusbank and both have continued to grow in the past year. However, this year Euromoney has chosen to recognize Belagroprombank for its impressive drive forward in the past 12 months. Not only has the bank hired a new chairman who many analysts regard as a dynamic and ambitious individual; it has also pushed forward with its retail offering, with a focus on agricultural lending and micro finance. In the past year this bank has grown rapidly, with an equity increase of 43% during 2006, and it gained a good proportion of market share, both moves that came hand in hand with a new branding and image that distanced the bank from the standard Soviet Union logo. The bank is opening a series of new branches to add to its already leading 118-office network and is developing a range of products across the spectrum for its retail clients, including more provision for credit and debit cards. These ambitions have been financed, in part, by the bank’s debut syndicated loan of €30 million, a success helped through by meeting IFRS accounting standards since 2004.