Central bank says starts taking bids for Otkritie Bank auction

MOSCOW, Aug 3 (PRIME) -- The central bank has started taking bids from strategic investors for an organized auction for Otkritie Financial Corporation (FC) Bank, the regulator said in a statement on Tuesday.

“The Bank of Russia … is starting preparation for the sale of shares through an organized auction. At the same time, the Bank of Russia is considering an alternative way of selling the bank’s shares to a strategic investor, this is why the Bank of Russia starts studying interest of potential investors in acquisition of the bank’s shares,” the statement read.

Bids collection is to understand the interest, depending on which the authority may spin off Otkritie FC Bank’s insurance business or its pension business before the sale. The way of the sale will be defined after analysis of the bids, the authority said.

Otkritie FC Bank was the first large bank to be bailed out through the central bank’s fund for consolidation of the banking sector. Otkritie CEO Mikhail Zadornov said previously that the regulator may sell an around 20–25% stake in the bank during the first privatization stage.

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