Alfa Bank arranges first trade finance deal with guarantees from Hermes since 1998 crisis
13 Jul 2001
The deal marks the first time since the 1998 Russian financial crisis that a Russian bank has arranged long-term trade financing with guarantees provided by the German export insurance agency Hermes. Hermes will cover 85% of the risk of a loan which will be provided by the German bank Bankgesellschaft Berlin AG. "The loan provided by the German bank is on pre-crisis terms," says Deputy Chairman of Alfa Bank's Executive Board Pavel Gorbatsevich. "This is a positive sign that Western partners have regained faith in Russian business. We are pleased to be a part of this renewed confidence." "Alfa Bank intends to develop its trade, project, and lease financing services business," says the Bank's Head of Trade and Project Finance Valeri Lukin. "We see this as a very promising sector. Today Russian companies need to restructure and modernise their production facilities and our financing services provide them with an excellent opportunity to obtain equipment on favourable terms." Alfa Bank is Russia's largest private bank and is active in investment banking, commercial banking, asset management, and insurance. It has more than 60 branches across nine time zones in Russia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan, and foreign subsidiary offices in London, Amsterdam, and New York.
Alfa Leasing, a 100% owned subsidiary of Alfa Bank, was set up in 1999 to provide lease financing to Russian companies. The company works with large multi-national manufacturers such as Caterpillar of the United States and Liebherr of Germany.
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