Report: CEO says sees Russia’s Sberbank privatization in late ‘16–17

MOSCOW, Jan 21 (PRIME) -- The privatization of the central bank’s stake in Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank will likely take place at the end of 2016 or in early 2017, CEO German Gref told CNBC channel in an interview broadcast Thursday.

“I think we can speak about privatization at the end of this year or next year, not earlier. It is the right time for privatization now but we must wait for stabilization of the situation on the market,” Gref said.

Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev said earlier that the government must resume discussions of privatization of largest state-run banks – Sberbank and VTB.

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