Alfa Bank JSC, the corporate treasury of the Alfa Group, is the largest private commercial bank in Russia. It was founded by Russian businessman Mikhail Fridman, who is still the controlling owner today. It is headquartered in Moscow. It operates in seven countries, providing financial services to over 40,000 active corporate customers and 5.3Â million retail clients. Alfa Bank is particularly active in Russia and Ukraine, ranking among top 10 largest banks in terms of capital in both countries. In the 2009 edition of the Top-1000 World Banks, a survey by The Banker magazine, Alfa Bank was placed 270th.
History
Timeline:
1990s
- 1990 â€" Alfa Bank founded as a partnership with limited liability by Russian entrepreneur Mikhail Fridman.
- 1991 â€" Licence to banking operations received from Central Bank of Russia and first corporate accounts open.
- 1992 â€" Central Bank grants more licences for broader activities. Alfa Bank opens first nostro accounts in six foreign banks. First retail branch opens in Moscow.
- 1993 â€" Alfa Bank becomes a member of Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange. General license to banking operations received from Central Bank. Alfa Bank starts dealing in government bonds (GKOs and OFZs).
- 1994 â€" Alfa Bank becomes a member of MasterCard/Europay international credit card system and joins the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. Pyotr Aven appointed as bank's President. Alfa Bank becomes the first Russian bank to open a subsidiary in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
- 1995 â€" Euromoney ranks Alfa Bank third in its category for "Best Russian Banks in 1995". Alfa Bank joins Factors Chain International. A representative office opens in London, United Kingdom.
- 1996 â€" Alfa Bank joins Euroclear and Visa International. It becomes one of the three participants in the first Eurobonds issue by Russian government since the October Revolution. Alfa Bank opens branch in Nizhniy Novgorod.
- 1997 â€" Alfa Bank draws $40 million syndicated loan. Euromoney declares Alfa Bank "The Best Bank in Russia in 1997". First credit ratings received from Moody's and Standard & Poor's (S&P). Alfa Bank places the first issue of $175 million, 3-year Eurobonds, becoming the first privately owned Russian bank to issue Eurobonds. Branches in Saint Petersburg and Samara open. The value of total assets passes $1 billion.
- 1998 â€" Alfa Bank is reorganized from limited liability company into open joint stock company. Euromoney ranks Alfa Bank "The Best Bank in Russia" for the second straight year. Alfa Bank merges with Alfa Capital, then a sister company of Alfa Group. A subsidiary bank opens in Novosibirsk, Russia's third most populous city.
- 1999 â€" Euromoney and Global Finance name Alfa Bank "The Best Russian Bank" despite the financial crisis. 14 new retail branches and offices open across Russia.
2000s
- 2000 â€" Alfa Bank acquires a 76% stake in Kyivinvestbank (later renamed "Alfa Bank Ukraine"). The Banker and Global Finance magazine name Alfa Bank "The Best Russian Bank". Alfa Securities, a broker and a subsidiary, opens in London.
- 2001 â€" By the end of first quarter, loan portfolio reaches $1 billion; Alfa Bank opens a subsidiary in New York City, Alfa Capital Markets, a NASD (now Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)) regulated company set up to provide brokerage and investment services in North and South America. Emerging Markets Investor and Global Finance name it "Best Bank in Russia". Alfa Bank becomes 100 percent owner of Amsterdam Trade Bank N.V. and thereby acquires a full banking licence in the European Union.
- 2002 â€" Gazprom and Alfa Bank reach an agreement on strategic partnership. Together with Merrill Lynch, Alfa Bank wins financial consulting contract from Unified Energy System. Fitch and S&P upgrade their credit rating on Alfa Bank. Once again Global Finance magazine declares Alfa Bank "The Best Russian Bank".
- 2003 â€" Unaudited financial statements reveal record high growth in profits in 2002 (loan portfolio increased 70% to $1.4 billion, assets surged 51%, while net income rose by more than a third). Alfa Bank, in partnership with the Lauder Institute of the Wharton School of Business, establishes a new award for "Excellence in Foreign Investment", which would be presented to foreign companies operating in Russia for weighty contribution to the corporate governance and successful business operations. Alfa Bank draws $82 million unsecured syndicated loan, the biggest on record among private banks. S&P, Fitch, and Moody's upgrade Alfa Bank's rating during the year.
- 2004 â€" Alfa Bank tops the list of financial consultants by deals value, completing $8.9 billion worth of transactions in 2003. Alfa Bank's loan portfolio grows by 52% year-over-year, reaching $2.8 billion.
- 2005 â€" Interbrand ranks Alfa Bank "9th strongest brand" in Russia. Mikhail Fridman becomes the member of the Public Chamber of Russia. Alfa Bank issues $225 million of subbordinated unsecured Eurobonds. S&P, Fitch, and Moody's upgrade Alfa Bank's rating during the year.
- 2006 â€" Alfa Bank completes the country’s first securitisation of diversified payment rights with a $350 million deal. Unaudited first quarter management International Financial Reporting Standards figures show total assets breaking the $10 billion mark for the first time in company's history.
- 2007 â€" In connection with the closure of Sodbiznesbank in 2004, Alfa Bank is searched by Russian police in September. Fitch upgrades Alfa Bank's rating.
- 2008 â€" Alfa Bank seeks $400 million government loan in October. It deploys 20,000 Aladdin eToken USB smartcard devices to its online customers. The bank acquires Severnaya Kazna, a major regional bank operating in the Urals region.
- 2009 â€" Fitch downgrades Alfa Bank's rating.
2010s
- 2010 â€" Alfa Bank launches a $1 billion 7-year Eurobond.
- 2011 â€" Alfa Bank seeks to buy Bank of Moscow, but the sale goes to VTB Bank.
- 2012 â€" In cooperation with Euroset, Alfa Bank launches a loyalty-card credit programme.
- 2016 â€" On 31 October and 2 November, Franklin Foer reported in Slate that there had been unusual repeated activity from 4 May to 23 September 2016 between two computer servers registered to Alfa Bank in Moscow and a server owned by the Trump Organization. The activity also included, to a much lesser extent, communications to a server at Spectrum Health, a medical facility chain led by Dick DeVos, the husband of Betsy DeVos. From August through October 2016, the FBI investigated the computer server activity between the Trump Organization and Alfa Bank.
- 2017 â€" In January, the Donald Trumpâ€"Russia dossier, prepared by former MI6 agent Christopher Steele and denoting various ties between Trump and Russia, was published in full in BuzzFeed News; the dossier mentions Alfa Bank's parent company Alfa Group (spelled "Alpha Group" in the dossier). On 10 March, CNN reported that the FBI was continuing to investigate the unusual computer activity between Alfa Bank and the Trump Organization which had occurred in the summer of 2016, and which had been reported in the media just before the U.S. presidential election. Also in March, Alfa Bank was the target of Ukrainian protests. In May, the owners of Alfa Bank filed a defamation lawsuit against BuzzFeed for publishing the unverified Donald Trumpâ€"Russia dossier, which alleges financial ties and collusion between Putin, Trump, and Alfa Bank's owners.
See also
- List of banks
- List of banks in Russia
- List of banks in Ukraine
- Alfa Corp. v. OAO Alfa Bank
References
External links
- Alfa Bank corporate site
- Russian website
