Why do banks buy businesses? Why did the state bank buy a non-core business. Who made it to the top
For Russian banks, the small business segment is traditionally an outsider - both in terms of lending, and in terms of non-credit services and cash and settlement services. The profitability of banks in the segment is not worth the effort required for entrepreneurs. And the problems that they can bring to credit institutions: a lot of time to work with documents, constant monitoring cash receipts, high risks attract the attention of the regulator.
The problem received public outcry when, at the Eastern Economic Forum, a businessman complained to the head of Sberbank German Gref that banks were blocking accounts for entrepreneurs, a “black list” of such entrepreneurs was being formed, and it was difficult for those who got into it to open a bank account. That is, in fact, you can put an end to business. Recently it became known that the business ombudsman Boris Titov turned to the Central Bank with a proposal to create a service to protect the interests of business, in particular, from such actions and hold bankers accountable for blocking without proper reason.
The number of complaints about illegal blocking of accounts and transactions is dozens of times higher than the number of other complaints recently
According to " Business Russia”, Since the beginning of 2017, banks have blocked the accounts of about 500 thousand entrepreneurs. Moreover, the number of complaints about illegal blocking of accounts and transactions is dozens of times higher than the number of other complaints recently. The basis for blocking is the law 115-FZ (“On counteracting the legalization (laundering) of proceeds from crime and the financing of terrorism”, aimed at combating money laundering and the “black” sector of the economy. The law has been in force for more than 16 years, but recently At present, the Central Bank has tightened regulation in terms of servicing entrepreneurs.For example, a requirement for documentary confirmation of beneficial owners has been added.But that's not all.Situations such as non-core receipts to the entrepreneur's current account, inappropriate spending of funds, insufficient amount of turnover taxes .
Entrepreneurs complain that they have to explain and provide documents for almost every small operation. Without this, banks have the right not to conduct transactions, referring to the suspiciousness of the movement of funds.
In July 2017, the Central Bank issued guidelines No. 18-MP and No. 19-MP, which indicate the signs of such suspicious transactions. In these documents, the regulator pointed to an increase in the volume of operations to withdraw money from debit cards legal entities and individual entrepreneurs, which may indicate the illegal use of this money (in other words, cashing out). And he recommended that banks comply with the requirements of 115-FZ not formally, but more strictly: to transfer information about such clients.
The signs are rather controversial, it is difficult to reliably tell from them whether this is a conscientious entrepreneur or he works “in the black”
Signs of suspicious businesses include, for example, a short period of operation of the company (less than 2 years), a large amount of cash in circulation (more than 30% of the weekly turnover), minimal the tax burden. As you can see, the signs are rather controversial, it is difficult to reliably tell from them whether this is a conscientious entrepreneur or he works “in the black”. For example, a courier company, a pizza delivery company or an online store of things will receive more than 30% of cash from turnover per day. Two years of work is a sign that applies to all startups and young businesses.
For example, in our practice there was a case when a bank closed a company's account simply because of a sharp increase in income. It seemed suspicious to the compliance service of the credit institution that the company had not received money for several months - for some reason this means for the regulator that the company was not functioning - and then millions came to the account in a month. But this is completely natural for a new enterprise! First, organizational issues are resolved, negotiations are held with partners and customers, and only then the receipt of funds begins. But it is much safer for a bank to close an account than to deal with the situation, because the Central Bank can revoke a license for non-compliance with 115-FZ.
The bank should raise questions if the entrepreneur has several corporate cards through which cash is withdrawn
There are more understandable suspicious moments. For example, a bank should raise questions if an entrepreneur has several corporate cards through which cash is withdrawn, and there are almost no other operations. Moreover, money is withdrawn regularly, at the end of one business day and again at the beginning of the next, and the amount is less than 600 thousand rubles or close to the maximum withdrawal limit. The bank must also start checking the business if money is credited to the account from counterparties whose bank accounts are used for operations with signs of transit, or from a counterparty that simultaneously transfers funds to the accounts of other clients. Also, the entrepreneur needs to carefully transfer money to his personal account - if they are quickly withdrawn, the bank may assess this as a suspicious transaction.
The requirements of the regulator can affect almost all areas of small business, especially the service sector, trade, tourism and others. According to Delovaya Rossiya, in June there were 200,000 SME clients on the Central Bank's black list, and at the moment there are 500,000 of them. At this rate, the number of suspicious entrepreneurs will grow to 1 million by the end of the year. At the same time, according to estimates Ministry of Economic Development, the number of SMEs in Russia in 2016 was 5.5 million (2.9 million individual entrepreneurs and 2.6 million small companies).
All blacklisted CBs will definitely face difficulties in opening bank accounts, although this shortlist is a recommendation, not a directive. It is unlikely that in the conditions of a market cleansing, credit institutions will want to work with clients who will attract the attention of the Central Bank to them.
Violation of 115-FZ is one of the key reasons for license revocation
There is a paradoxical situation when, on the one hand, the state is interested in the development of small business, and, on the other hand, any suspicious movement on accounts leads to an immediate blocking of funds. As a result, it turns out that, on the one hand, banks are encouraged to work with small businesses - to finance, to offer non-credit products. On the other hand, it is this segment that is both quite labor-intensive and not very marginal, and even the most problematic in terms of regulatory risks. Violation of 115-FZ is one of the key reasons for the revocation of licenses. According to our estimates, in 2016, the Central Bank withdrew about a third of all licenses on this basis.
However, public outcry can lead to a solution to this problem. In particular, business ombudsman Boris Titov asked the Central Bank to issue recommendations on the application of anti-money laundering regulations. We can also talk about creating a mechanism for the rehabilitation of companies that are on the "black" lists, but in fact are leading a healthy and conscientious business.
Sergei Pustynsky
Lending to small and medium-sized businesses has decreased by 10% since the beginning of the year, despite the fact that large businesses are increasing the attraction of borrowed funds, and the state will not reduce support for small entrepreneurs. Why are banks in no hurry to lend to small businesses, and are there any objective reasons for this?
It will not be possible to change the negative trend until the end of the year, despite the growth in state support for SMEs from the state and the growth loan portfolio Sberbank for 35 billion rubles. All other credit institutions will reduce funding for this sector of the economy by the end of the year, the Bank of Russia acknowledges. This is an extremely alarming signal, says Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. And here, according to him, a certain trend can be traced. He recalled that already last year there was a reduction in lending to small and medium-sized businesses by 5%, and this year may further complicate the situation. The head of government acknowledged that credit support measures are not working well, although the state, through the SME corporation, has allocated 70 billion rubles for these purposes this year.
In turn, Alexander Kalinin, president of the Opora Rossii organization, noted that lending to small and medium-sized businesses is declining due to continued high stakes on issued loans, lack of collateral, and, in general, the unwillingness of banks to mess around with small things when it is possible to lend to big businesses.
According to the results of the current year, lending to small businesses will not change much compared to 2015, and growth will not begin until next year, according to the National Agency for Financial Research. They conducted a survey, according to which the demand for loans was noted only in half of small businesses. The rest prefer to use for development own funds or partners' money, and loans are taken only for replenishment working capital. But even those small entrepreneurs who would like to open a credit line most often receive a refusal from the bank, and only 10-12% receive the desired money. And here, according to experts, there are objective reasons.
Unfortunately, delinquency on loans to small businesses remains at a very high level, notes Maxim Lukyanovich of VTB 24 Bank. According to him, the industry average is 18%, which is twice as high as in lending to individuals and the corporate sector. Plus the requirement of the Central Bank to reserve from 75% to 100% of loans issued to small businesses. All this makes this type of lending low-margin, and sometimes unprofitable. In addition, problems constantly arise with the analysis of such borrowers due to low-quality, and sometimes falsified financial statements. And the quality of collateral leaves much to be desired. Although this problem is often solved by state guarantees for SME loans.
State guarantees for loans to small businesses should be at least doubled this year, Opora Rossii believes. This will allow a sharp increase in lending to small businesses. Since the beginning of the year, such guarantees have been issued for 25 billion rubles, and the potential demand for them reaches 1 trillion rubles. rub.
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Since the beginning of the year, the volume of lending to small businesses has decreased by almost 2 times. Overdue business debts to banks are growing, the demand for its services is falling, and banks do not want to increase their portfolios in such conditions. The bankers told DP what is happening with loans to small businesses and why this issue is becoming more and more painful for Russian banks and entrepreneurs.
"We always say: banks should lend more to small and medium business. But if today small and medium-sized businesses are not in demand in the country for some reason, if today there is no field of activity for them, then what is the point of lending more? It will only be bad debts. Therefore, it seems to me that we really need to move away from consumption: there is consumption - there is demand, there will be money. No consumption - no demand, just flood the economy for the sake of creating artificial demand ... We know how it ends."
And although entrepreneurs claim that small businesses always pay their loans most efficiently, the dry numbers say otherwise. According to "", the debt of small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) to banks for Last year grew by a record 31.47%. As of August 1, 2015, the share of overdue debt in this lending segment reached 12%. More and more entrepreneurs, with all the desire to pay the loan at existing rates, are simply not able to.
More bank guarantees
Now unsecured loans are becoming more and more popular among entrepreneurs, bank guarantees and loans to replenish working capital, notes Chairman Dmitry Kurdyukov. "Small and medium-sized businesses can count money no worse than large ones. That is why one of the most demanded banking products For the second year now there have been guarantees, the cost of which varies depending on the type of the guarantee itself and the collateral, but is still lower than the loan rate," agrees Dmitry Prokhorevich.
"Traditionally, more than 70% of loans were aimed at replenishing working capital and covering cash gaps. Of course, now this share has increased slightly and is approximately 80%. One fifth of the loans (and not a third, as before) falls on the modernization of existing industries, vehicle fleets , refurbishment and expansion of warehouse and other commercial premises," Ivan Makarov says about what entrepreneurs have been taking loans for lately.
"The demand for lending to SMEs has not disappeared. Applications are received, for the most part, for loans to finance working capital, as well as projects to expand or modernize the business," says Anton Bolshakov, commercial director of the St. Petersburg North region , deputy manager of the St. Petersburg branch .
“Any lending during a crisis is more risky. Simply because the demand of end consumers is decreasing. financial sphere, an integral part of which is bank lending, took a break for this time. Moreover, during a crisis, the need for borrowed funds often becomes more severe. However, along with supporting lending to the SME sector, the bank should also analyze in more detail the financial and economic activities of borrowers, paying primary attention to the prospects for the development of a particular business in terms of the term of the planned loan," notes Anton Bolshakov.
Take risks and increase your share
Despite the fact that the head of VTB claims that it is impossible to increase lending to SMEs, its subsidiary VTB 24 recently announced that it plans to increase the volume of loans in the small business segment in 2016 by almost 1.5 times, to 116-117 billion rubles (according to in 2015, the bank plans to lend RUB 83-86 billion to SMEs). Large state-owned banks can just afford to take risks, unlike small ones, and they have the opportunity to increase their share in this segment, while small banks are cautious and refuse entrepreneurs in response to applications.
However, there is not much time left for this: SME lending is starting to revive along with lower rates. In addition, this segment sank not so much against the background of the rest and will be able to recover faster, the bankers are sure. "In general, the sphere of lending to small and medium-sized businesses still looks better than some other areas of lending. For example, in the field of consumer loans, demand from borrowers has fallen by 3-3.5 times compared to last year," Ivan Makarov notes.
“In addition, it must be understood that the main part of the decline in loans in the first half of the year is associated with a sharp drop in demand for loans from small and medium-sized businesses at the beginning of the year. Since July, we have already seen a recovery trend in both demand and the issuance of loans. first with a decrease interest rates on loans. Currently, unsecured lending in the form of an overdraft at acceptable rates is already available to borrowers. In addition, various programs are being actively implemented to support potential borrowers from the small business sector," he adds.
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Corporate venture funds have already established themselves as effective instruments for financing high-tech developments. However, in this regard, Russia is still far from the West. According to a study by the Club of Directors for Science and Innovation, the total volume of venture funds for Russian corporations is estimated at 17 billion rubles ( Russian market venture investments in general - 62 billion rubles).
The good news is that in the past year, the activity of corporate venture increased due to companies financial sector. Tinkoff Bank can be considered a pioneer Credit Systems» Oleg Tinkov, who created Tinkoff Digital in June last year to finance projects in the field of Internet and mobile technologies. Then, in the summer, it became known about the launch of the Life.Sreda venture fund under the Life financial group. Life's investors promised to start issuing $1 million to start-ups and add at least ten projects to their portfolio. To date, Life.Sreda has financed six projects related to the development of promising financial services.
Sberbank announced the launch of a $100 million venture fund to be managed by Troika Dialog, with further investments in the fund planned to be expanded to $500 million. Specific startups supported by the bank are not yet known. Promsvyazbank opened its venture fund at the end of February, which wants to support 50-70 enterprises in the next two years. The total volume of the fund is 300 million rubles.
Obviously, it is by no means a banal desire to make money that pushes the bank to create venture divisions in the first place. Investments in venture, in comparison with the total assets of financial giants, are too small. For example, TCS-Bank - at the time of the road show (November 2012) on the eve of the IPO - was valued at $ 2 - 2.2 billion, against this background, the $ 20 million planned for venture capital does not look like such a serious investment. For comparison: Gazprom also announced its global plans to create a venture fund, not excluding that by 2016 its volume will increase to 20 billion rubles.
Most likely, Russian banks decided to try to invest in the ecosystem around them, as technology corporations do. Let's say the Microsoft Seed Fund supports Windows Phone 8 apps to promote its platform. Perhaps, banks want to attract additional customers with new applications. And since banks cannot attract startups by lending (the risks of default are too high), why not try the venture scenario? This is a great option to “buy” working projects that banks, as rather clumsy corporate structures, cannot create in their own development departments.
Another motive is headhunting. In fairly conservative banking institutions, the likelihood of fresh ideas is significantly less than in the open market. Therefore, most likely, the development invested and bought by the bank will be “better” than developed by its own programmers. It’s not a fact that it’s better, but it’s definitely more relevant and more creative, since full-time IT specialists are much more likely to do their work “leave me alone”.
Established corporate funds plan to invest in projects early stages, and only Life.Environment supports projects of any level. When the market for grown services develops in Russia, most likely, funds of the next stages will appear with banks, experts say. “So far, financial mobile and Internet services that have truly formed into a commercial product can be counted on the fingers,” says Kirill Rubinshtein, head of the Internet service Smartnut / NAUMEN Group, “and therefore, so far, all projects in this area are “in the hands” of seed investors and investors of the A round, not even B. Accordingly, it is still too early for banks to act as strategists - the stage of exits of venture funds has not yet arrived.
Time will show what the competition between "classic" venture funds and corporate divisions for early-stage e-commerce projects will lead to. In the meantime, it is obvious that their proposals for startups can be more attractive only due to the opportunities from working with the bank. Therefore, it is worth going to bank funds for startups in the field of Internet accounting, personal finance accounting mobile systems payment. Due to the fact that these projects have the same target customers as banks (regardless of b2b or b2c), developers can get more opportunities in terms of technology testing on the huge audience that banks have access to.
“I could well put the funds that appeared under the banks on a par with our Intel Capital fund; we are talking about the same investments for the sake of technology - says Vadim Sukhomlinov, head of strategic business development for Intel in Russia and the CIS countries. – At the same time, it seems to me that there will be no serious competition for projects between banking and corporate venture funds. Rather, on the contrary, the emergence of new players opens up venture investors opportunities for co-investment, this is a tangible trend in the market today.”
Enduring interest Russian state To retail resulted in the purchase of a key stake in one of the industry leaders. After agreement with the Federal Antimonopoly Service, 29.1% of the shares of the Magnit network will be transferred to the VTB Group. The deal looks quite market-oriented, but now the business processes of the largest retailer in terms of the number of stores will be controlled National Bank.
According to the founder of Magnit, Sergei Galitsky, he stood at the helm for too long and was tired of the daily psychological stress. According to Andrey Kostin, chairman of the board of VTB, the proposal came from Galitsky, the negotiations lasted six months and entered the practical phase in December 2017. Probably, Galitsky foresaw that the year would end unsuccessfully for Magnit: with a slight increase in revenue net profit the company fell by almost 35%, capitalization in London - by almost 50%. However, this did not bother the buyer. The press release about the deal says that VTB management sees the huge potential of the retail segment and intends, based on experience and financial resources groups, bring "Magnet" to a qualitatively new level development. VTB really has experience in investing in retail, although it cannot be said that it is fundamental: in 2009-2011. VTB Capital twice bought shares in the Lenta hypermarket chain. But there is a different story of the purchase - together with partners (TPG and the EBRD), and the ownership strategy - first VTB earned on the IPO of Lenta, then sold almost the entire remaining stake.
VTB's next retail investment was mobile operator Tele2: purchase of 100%, then the sale of half of the company to the structures of Alexei Mordashov and Yuri Kovalchuk, and at the third stage - its merger with the cellular subsidiary of the state holding Rostelecom. All this was done in 2013 alone. Rostelecom, which previously owned a cellular network in the Urals, but received a license for the fourth generation of cellular communications (LTE) throughout the country, thanks to VTB, made its dream of becoming a federal cellular operator come true.
In the case of Magnit, a quick resale is not planned: Kostin hints that it will take 5-6 years to increase the value of the company. But if this possession is for a long time, it is a sin for the state not to use it. The federal and regional authorities have long been in a quiet war with retail over shelf prices, especially for so-called socially important goods (and Galitsky actively opposed such forced regulation). According to Vladimir Tsuprov, Managing Director for Investments at TKB Investment Partners, VTB in the deal with Magnit undoubtedly has economic interest, but if there is a desire on the part of the government to use a very extensive retail network for social projects, the bank will be more difficult to resist than the previous owner.