Russian banks may need $16 bln
Güncelleme Tarihi:
The Associated Press
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Mayıs 21, 2009 00:00
MOSCOW - Russian banks may need some $16 billion in capital injections this year as they are likely to face a surge in bad loans, a senior Central Bank official said yesterday.
Alexei Simanovsky, head of the Central Bank's banking regulations department, said the share of non-performing loans in the financial system is now 4 percent, Interfax reported.
The bank estimates that figure will reach 10 to 12 percent by the end of the year, Simonovsky was quoted as saying. He added, however, that that is a pessimistic forecast based on performance in the fourth quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year.
"Most likely the situation will be better," he said, according to Interfax.
Still, he said banks may need 500 billion rubles ($16 billion) in capital injections to shore up their funds.
Russian banks came under intense pressure last autumn when a lack of confidence in the sector sparked a liquidity squeeze. Russia's worsening economic situation has led to a spike in overdue loans, and bankers and analysts have warned that non-performing loans pose a serious threat to the stability of the country's financial sector.
State-owned Sberbank head German Gref warned recently that an upsurge in unpaid loans could trigger a second wave of problems in the banking sector by the end of the year.
The 4 percent figure for bad loans does not include data from state-owned Sberbank, Russia's largest bank, which would bring the share of bad loans down, Simonovsky said.
The bank estimates that figure will reach 10 to 12 percent by the end of the year, Simonovsky was quoted as saying. He added, however, that that is a pessimistic forecast based on performance in the fourth quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year.
"Most likely the situation will be better," he said, according to Interfax.
Still, he said banks may need 500 billion rubles ($16 billion) in capital injections to shore up their funds.
Russian banks came under intense pressure last autumn when a lack of confidence in the sector sparked a liquidity squeeze. Russia's worsening economic situation has led to a spike in overdue loans, and bankers and analysts have warned that non-performing loans pose a serious threat to the stability of the country's financial sector.
State-owned Sberbank head German Gref warned recently that an upsurge in unpaid loans could trigger a second wave of problems in the banking sector by the end of the year.
The 4 percent figure for bad loans does not include data from state-owned Sberbank, Russia's largest bank, which would bring the share of bad loans down, Simonovsky said.