Russia’s Largest Bank to Open Branch in India

Sberbank (Savings Bank), Russia’s oldest and largest state-run retail bank is to shortly open its branch in New Delhi as part of its strategy to expand in the emerging markets. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last month cleared Sberbank’s application for opening a fully-operational branch in New Delhi. Currently it is completing the formalities for obtaining banking license from RBI and hiring staff. Established in 1841, Sberbank is the largest credit institution in Russia and the former Soviet space, accounting for about a quarter of the aggregate Russian banking assets and a third of banking capital. Under the new strategy, the Bank plans to build a foothold in India and China to generate about 5 per cent of net income outside Russia by 2014.