Latest articles from Ben Aris

The job of membership

August 7, 2006

Mladjan Dinkic, Serbia’s minister of finance, is readying the banking sector for EU accession. Ben Aris reports.

Russia establishes two development banks

July 3, 2006

Russia is beginning to tackle more fundamental problems with its economy. With advice from Germany’s KfW, it is boosting its banking system. Ben Aris reports from Moscow.

Renaissance cuts its teeth on a meaty deal

June 5, 2006

Russia’s Cherkizovo chose Renaissance Capital as a local adviser for its IPO. Then, after several partners – including Morgan Stanley – walked out, the home-grown talent was left in charge. Ben Aris reports.

The slow road to recovery

April 3, 2006

Although business confidence is up regarding Germany’s prospects for recovery this year, members of the public and the Mittelstand remain unconvinced. Ben Aris reports.

Centre stage for niche performers

March 6, 2006

Investors cannot wait for the expected wave of IPOs among Russia’s top-end banks in 2007. Ben Aris profiles four dynamic players flirting with flotation.

A resurgence without risk

February 6, 2006

Financial-industrial groups are making a comeback, but the banks they created are reducing risk by diversifying from related-party business. Meanwhile, the pure banks have also benefited from the economic upturn. Ben Aris reports from Moscow.

Options for cutting debt

December 5, 2005

Ben Aris reports from Moscow on the increasing trend of using structured products to cope with consolidation.

Back to the futures

December 5, 2005

Futures and options trading in Russia is making a tentative comeback since its curtailment in the wake of the 1998 financial crisis. Ben Aris in Moscow reports.
There are few places in the world where the future is less certain than in Russia, but maturing valuations of Russian stocks means an increasing number of investors are willing to bet on it.

Central bank finds its teeth

December 5, 2005

Russia’s central bank has moved out of the Kremlin’s pocket and is starting to regulate the sector aggressively. Ben Aris reports from Moscow.

Rossisky resurrection

November 7, 2005

Rossisky Kredit Bank nearly went under in Russia’s 1998 financial crisis. Ben Aris reports from Moscow on how it weathered the storm and its miraculous comeback as an investment bank.
Rossisky Kredit Bank (RKB) is back from the dead. One of the dozen banks that were household names in the 1990s, but collapsed during the 1998 financial crisis, RKB is the only big Russian bank to have paid off all its debts and returned to profit.
RKB’s recovery is a damning condemnation of its peers, which walked away from billions of dollars in debt and left hundreds of thousands of pensioners destitute after they lost their life savings.

The Banker on Twitter