The National Bank of Ukraine notes the positive signals in the statement of Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) Group announced following the results of the General Meeting on 30 March. At that time, CEO Johann Strobl said that the bank would be looking into the possible sale or withdrawal of its russian business from the Austrian group.
This is stated on the regulator's website.
The National Bank notes that the statement does not contain a clear plan with specific steps and deadlines for their implementation. At the same time, it "may indicate a shift from the search for 'strategic options for the future' to the bank's readiness to actually reduce its business activity in russia and implement decisions that will lead to the sale or spin-off or deconsolidation of Raiffeisenbank russia from the Group."
Meanwhile, the National Bank of Ukraine has warned the RBI Group against a potential exit of Raiffeisenbank from russia by exchanging assets with the sanctioned Sberbank in Austria. "The deal that allows the kremlin-owned bank to keep its blocked assets in Europe and return them to russia to further support russia's economic stability and ability to wage war on Ukraine does not stand up to any criticism, not to mention violating sanctions restrictions that will undoubtedly require adjustments to ensure the implementation of the proposed plan," the NBU said in a statement.
Earlier this month, Austrian newspaper Falter reported that the top management of Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) had been discussing a potential exchange of russian assets with Sberbank. The documents obtained by the publication stated that Sberbank would be able to offset losses from the loss of Sberbank Europe, while RBI would be able to offset the inability to receive dividends from its russian subsidiary.