VTB Bank - Armenia issued the following announcement on Oct. 10.

VTB has reached an agreement with the shareholders on the acquisition of 81% stake in Sarovbusinessbank, one of the leading banks in the Nizhny Novgorod Region. A memorandum has been signed between VTB and the shareholders of Sarovbusinessbank.

The parties expect to close the deal by the end of this year, subject to due regulatory and corporate approvals. The final size of the stake will be determined once VTB makes the mandatory buyback offer to the minority shareholders.

When the transaction is finalised, VTB will determine the steps for further integration of the banks, which is planned to be completed in 2020 with Sarovbusinessbank merger into VTB bank. Its development strategy will focus on strengthening the bank’s market position in the Nizhny Novgorod Region.

Prior to the banks’ integration, Sarovbusinessbank’s key product and service line will be retained and diversified with VTB Group’s insurance and pension products. Further steps include integrating the ATM networks and synchronising the key elements of the business processes using the technological capabilities of VTB Group. Sarovbusinessbank’s team, which has extensive experience in the Nizhny Novgorod Region, will be retained.

“Sarovbusinessbank is one of the leaders in the banking sector across the Volga region serving over 180,000 active clients, it is a profitable and sustainable franchise. The deal will support VTB’s market share expansion in retail deposit and lending markets. Along with the access to familiar products and services, the clients of the merged bank will additionally benefit from client service capabilities of VTB Group,” said

Original source can be found here.