Foreign-owned banks make up roughly 12% of both the Tier 1 capital and the assets of the Russian banks in The Banker's database, but account for 27% of the profits. So while Russia maintains a largely nationally owned system – in contrast to many central and eastern European markets, where foreign banks dominate – overseas banks are now holding on to a significant share.
What is more, the foreign-owned banks are turning a good profit on the assets they have, with an average return on assets of 1.65%, more than 50% higher than the top 75 average of 1%, and profits on average capital of 18.13%, compared with 7.11% for the top 75. Capital ratios, by contrast, are broadly similar at about 15% for both types of bank.
