Bank holding companies will give an official status

The Government has made to the State Duma a bill that would legalize the activities of banking groups and holding companies, and determines how they will be supervised. Initiative is more than relevant. Today, banking is actually concentrated in okologosudarstvennyh structures. According to Dmitry Ananiev, Chairman of the Federation Council committee on financial markets and money circulation, now more than half of banking sector assets accounted for by six state-owned banks. Other financial institutions is extremely difficult to compete with these monsters. Association in the banking group will allow them to consolidate resources and provide an opportunity to compete with major players. "With this idea I was approached by credit organizations of medium size. They propose to convert the independent banks in holding companies. For example, five banks with a capital of one billion rubles form a holding company to which they contribute their share depending on the size of the capital. Further, the holding company produces the unification of products that the bank provides to its customers, develop uniform standards, that is actually turning into a full and credit institution - a banking group that works on the same principles. But it becomes more powerful and can compete with state banks, - says head of the Association of regional banks Anatoly Aksakov. - I had talks with the International Finance Corporation and the Bank, they are willing to work with such holdings, enter into their capital, thus providing an international authority and international standards for the operation of such holding company. " The bill clarifies the concept of banking groups and bank holding company. Obstacles to the exchange of information among team members. Legislatively fixed bases of interaction of the Bank of Russia and the federal bodies of executive power under the supervision of banking groups and holdings. The bill specifies the composition of the individual credit reporting organizations and consolidated accounts of groups of banks and holding companies. "The introduction of the bill will improve the quality of risk management in banking groups and bank holding companies, the effectiveness of banking supervision, timely detection of areas of high risks taken by the lending institutions that are part of banking groups and bank holding companies. It will also enable users to obtain more complete and accurate information about the activities of banking groups and bank holding companies to make informed economic decisions "- according to the authors of the bill. Anatoly Aksakov believes that the current situation encourages some members of the banking market by the establishment of banking groups and holdings. "This version of the banking market is becoming increasingly important for Russia. Creation of bank holding companies can greatly increase the capitalization of the domestic banking system. Bank holding company has a notable priorities both in terms of attractiveness to international investors and to attract financial resources of the domestic market. In this format greatly reduces the "personalized" business risks, ie risks associated with the activity of individual owners and top managers of the bank. In addition, within the holding there is possibility of unification of banking products, business processes, etc. Such an approach would reduce transaction costs, banking - he lists. - In terms of free or forced reduction in the number of banks increased capacity "remaining in service" within the bank holding company may make the quantitative loss of the banking industry at the expense of qualitative growth of its work. Successful bank holding companies and groups will be able to compete with the biggest state banks, thereby ensuring a symmetrical development of the market as a whole. "