The Meeting Summed up VEB’s Performance Results for 2012 and Approved the Bank’s Annual Report

D. Medvedev’s Opening Address:

We are having Vnesheconombank’s regular Supervisory Board meeting today. We’ll review VEB’s performance report for 2012. We have also to deal with objectives associated with major investments in modern high technology projects. There is no doubt that we can’t implement these projects without using development institutions. VEB is our leading development institution – it extended credits in its capacity as a bank for development for an amount of 720 billion rubles as of January 1 of the current year. This is about 200 million more than planned in the Bank’s Development Strategy. Most of the funds worth 670 billion rubles were used to finance large-scale investment projects in above all infrastructure assets, agro-industrial complex, chemical and petrochemical industries. If we add credits VEB extended as a whole, the total amount of funds provided to the economy exceeded 1 trillion rubles.

The most significant projects launched by VEB last year are the following: building Express Am7 satellite, reconstructing the Izhevsk cogeneration plant, constructing crude oil and oil products tankers, developing the Talitsky area of the Verkhnekamsk potassium  and magnesium salts deposit and a number of other projects.

These are large-scale projects but we also give high priority to small and medium-sized enterprises and once we geared Vnesheconombank to provide support for small and medium sized enterprises.

VEB provided credits to SMEs for an amount of almost 50 billion rubles and this is about 20 billion rubles more than in 2011. Moreover, the amount of credits VEB extended to Russian exporters increased by two times from 2011. We have created a mechanism that ensures competitive conditions for funding Russian exporters.

At the end of 2012, a subsidy worth 3 billion rubles was transferred to the Bank. For the first time in the modern Russian practice of supporting exports, a target subsidy was provided in line with WTO and OECD standards. These funds are to be used to compensate for interest rates on export credits.

Borrowings were made both on domestic and foreign financial markets. The Bank also raised syndicated loans with the help of a pool of banks. Vladimir Dmitriev (V. Dmitriev is Vnesheconombank’s Chairman) will report on this separately.

And one more theme to mention, VEB has become a full member of the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific. I hope that VEB’s membership in this Association will enhance its and Russia’s role in this region as a whole. It’s very important for us to be present there in various ways. V. Dmitriev will report on this in more detail.

I’d like to bring up one more issue, it is of social importance. The program of VEB’s investments in affordable housing construction is being completed. Almost 95% of this program has been carried out. The Bank extended about 88 thousand mortgage loans worth more than 140 billion rubles; more than 3.3 million square meters of living space were purchased. The program embraces almost all regions. Since it was launched in 2010, interest rates have fallen almost to 13% but unfortunately we have to admit that this a very high interest rate anyway, although we took measures to reduce it.

This is a task for the future and of course not only for VEB because credit rates are interrelated with each other and we can’t have a mortgage credit rate of 5% in one bank and 13% in the other. Nevertheless, this is a task for our entire banking system and we discussed the issue repeatedly during our previous meetings. There’s no doubt we need to stimulate demand for economic class housing which should be affordable for the largest categories of population. I believe that we could prolong this program until late 2014. Let’s discuss this at our Supervisory Board meeting.

And finally, we’ll approve the results of the Development Award Contest – these are modern projects, investment programs. 221 applications were submitted, there are laureates and their names are usually declared during the Petersburg Economic Forum. I think the VEB’s Chairman will tell about it separately. This is our today’s agenda and there are many other issues I haven’t mentioned. Let’s work tightly getting to the heart of all matters to be discussed.

Let’s start with approving the Bank’s annual performance report and making a decision on distributing profits generated by Vnesheconombank in 2012.

Origin: Internet Portal of the Government of the Russian Federation

VEB intends to increase its loan portfolio in 2013 at the rates on the level of 2012 and it sees risks in funding

Gorky (the Moscow region), May 28. INTERFAX AFI – Vnesheconombank (VEB) intends to increase its loan portfolio in 2013 at the rates comparable to those in 2012; funding of transactions will be a restraining factor, Vnesheconombank Chairman Vladimir Dmitriev told journalists after VEB’s Supervisory Board meeting.

“We have serious plans for increasing our loan portfolio, we are going to increase it at the rates comparable to those in 2012, the rates are somewhat restrained as we have to fund our transactions and meet capital adequacy ratio”, he said.

Moreover, saying about plans for borrowings in the current year V. Dmitriev said that the Bank intended to make both ruble and foreign currency borrowings. He said that he found it difficult specify dates for implementing these plans.

It was reported earlier that VEB’s loan portfolio before reserves under IFRS in 2012 increased by 21.5% to 1 trillion 691 billion rubles from 1 trillion 392 billion in 2011. The Bank’s loan portfolio after reserves increased by 21.8% to 1 trillion 497 billion rubles from 1 trillion 229 billion rubles. The proportion of credits to customers in assets increased for the year 2012 from 49% to 51%.

Guarantees extended by Vnesheconombank made it possible to support industrial exports in the amount of 17 billion rubles – Dmitriev

GORKY, May 28. /ITAR-TASS/. Guarantees extended by Vnesheconombank made it possible to support industrial exports in the amount of 17 billion rubles, Vnesheconombank Chairman Vladimir Dmitriev told journalists. “At the end of the last year Vnesheconombank entered into an agreement on extending guarantees to the Export Insurance Agency of Russia in the amount of 10 billion rubles. We have already extended guarantees worth 700 million rubles and this made it possible to support industrial exports in the amount of more than 17 billion rubles”, he said.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said at VEB’s Supervisory Board meeting today that a mechanism for ensuring competitive conditions for funding exporters was created n Russia with the help of Vnesheconombank. At the end of 2012, 3 billion rubles were transferred to the Bank. For the first time in the modern Russian practice of supporting exports, a target subsidy was provided in line with WTO and OECD standards. These funds are to be used to compensate for interest rates on export credits.

VEB’s Supervisory Board approves nominees for the Development Award

GORKY, May 28 – RIA Novosti. Vnesheconombank’s Supervisory Board approved nominees for the Development Award, their names will be declared at the Petersburg Economic Forum, Vnesheconombank Chairman Vladimir Dmitriev told journalists.

“VEB’s Supervisory Board approved proposals offered by Vnesheconombank and based on the recommendations given by Vnesheconombank’s Expert Council for the nominees for the Development Award”, he said.

Dmitriev reminded that the Award is given in four nominations and will be presented at the Petersburg Economic Forum by the Head of the state.

“Today we have approved institutions that will receive this Award in the course of the Petersburg Economic Forum”, he said adding that he will not name the institutions because this must be a surprise for the public”.

VEB’s management performance efficiency to be evaluated not only by the amount of loan portfolio by also by its quality – Dmitriev

GORKY, May 28. /ITAR-TASS/. One of criteria to evaluate Vnesheconombank’s management performance efficiency will be the Bank’s loan portfolio quality, Vnesheconombank Chairman Vladimir Dmitriev told journalists.

According to him VEB’s Supervisory Board has approved today key performance efficiency indicators for 2012 and a plan for relevant indicators for 2013.

“We agreed that besides quantitative indicators in evaluating Vnesheconombank’s performance as well as  in making bonus payments to managerial personnel and employees we will take into account the Bank’s loan portfolio quality”, said Dmitriev. According to him, this is especially important because of the loan portfolio increased amounts. “Given the said growth, quality is important too”, Vnesheconombank Chairman stressed.

VEB might purchase infrastructure bonds of Rostech and Rosnano

GORKY, May 28 – Prime. Vnesheconombank is exploring the possibility of purchasing infrastructure bonds of Rostech and Rosnano, VEB Chairman Vladimir Dmitriev told journalists.

“We are considering applications submitted by Rosnano and Rostech”, he said without specifying sums and dates for purchasing these bonds.

Dmitriev also confirmed Vnesheconombank’s plans for purchasing RZHD’s infrastructure bonds worth 100 billion rubles as well as infrastructure bonds of UES FGC.