DIRECT SPEECH – VTB President Andrei Kostin on pandemic, Yandex, economy and reappraisal of values
VTB, Russia’s second largest state-owned bank does not see any risk of severe restrictions due to the pandemic or new sanctions on Russian banks, and is ready to invest almost a trillion rubles in the Russian state debt with a view of mutual support of the shareholder and the regulator, as Andrei Kostin, President of the state bank, said in his interview to Reuters.
Kostin on banking sector, Yandex partnership, grain business and state debt
Full text of the interview with Kostin follows below:
CRISIS, PANDEMIC, SANCTIONS
We are seeing an economic crisis that has not been caused by any financial problems, global or Russian ones. This crisis is of a different nature. That’s why, as I see it, there should be a quicker rebound that the one after the 2008-2009 crisis. And there is some proof to this.
But if just recently I have thought that economies, states and borders would reopen, now it is obvious: it is not happening anytime soon, the disease is spreading, the pandemic has got its second wind. And I see, at least for my friends and employees, that the virus has become even more “catchy” than it was this spring.
I do not expect any restrictions of the scale we have already seen this year. The majority of people do not want this, and the President and the head of the government are saying the same. Nevertheless, the current situation is slowing recovery of the economy.
We will have to live in the current conditions for some time.
We will obviously have to adjust GDP decline estimates for this year and forecasts for the next year. I have already asked my analysts to have a look at that. Previously my colleagues forecasted that GDP would fall by 3-4%. Now, if Q4 shows weak performance, it could be 4,5-5%.
I think we will be able to head into an economic growth phase next year. According to a forecast by our analysts, GDP will grow by 4%.
But it is possible it would be lower. Anyway, we have passed the lowest point of the economy’s slump, and overall I see by my customers that the situation is bearable, workable and the economy is feeling steady. I am a moderate optimist. I don’t think it will be worse, I think it will be better than it has been.
Still another factor not to be overlooked – continuing sanctions. Now we are on the verge of the US elections.
It is hard to say which candidate would be better for the US-Russia relations. For example, for some reason it was assumed that Russia had supported Trump’s election, but we see that his four years in office have been marked by severe sanctions against Russia.
However, even US experts say that the sanctions are largely depleted now. It is unclear, who or what to hit with any new sanctions. Now I take it as a given that the sanctions will not be lifted, but I do not think they will be tightened either. We are making our plans based on this premise. And then we’ll see. Nobody knows their future, right? And this may be the very essence of human happiness.
ARE THERE ANY NEW RISKS ARISING FROM THE SITUATION WITH NAVALNY?
I am not a politician to spin these things. I do not see any additional risks in these (new sanctions).
EXCLUSION FROM SWIFT
I never believed that exclusion from SWIFT is a realistic scenario.
There are two levels of sanctions against banks: a rather soft one, it was applied to major Russian banks, and the other — a hard one, and we have seen it imposed against Russia Bank and some others. The hard option involves ban on dollar settlements and payments, asset freezes.
A bank thus is cut off from international operations and cannot provide services in foreign currencies both to private and corporate customers. This is a severe measure, which makes exclusion from SWIFT pointless.
I think this will be the most likely scenario, if one forecasts development of sanctions. But I do not see these risks for now, at least not until the US elections are over and a clear program of a new president is announced.
STATE DEBT AND BANKS
As it often happens in life, if you support someone, you count on support in return. This is really a valid principle, though it doesn’t always work.
I am an advocate of an increase in state debt, this is important for economic development and investment into digitalization of the country, infrastructure projects. VTB is ready to finance the budget, especially if there are refinancing tools. This is a profitable and comfortable deal for the bank, since it requires no capital expenses, which is of particular importance to us.
We have been active on the OFZ market, we have already bought bonds for RUB 300 bn and plan to increase the volume by 2-3 times.
The ratio of the state debt to GDP in Russia this year will grow from 12,3% to 19,1% only. IMF thinks that such economies as Russia may take the ratio up to 40%. So we have a lot of headroom here. But the Ministry of Finance has no plans to increase the state debt anytime soon– it will grow a little over 21%. I believe this level of state debt is absolutely harmless for the country and enables resolution of issues with national project financing.
I do not see any risks for banks, risks are minimal if there is a refinancing tool in place. Default risk and the risk of the Central Bank scrapping the refinancing tool are out of the question.
FISCAL RULE
We plan to discuss this issue at our Russia Calling Forum at a macroeconomic panel discussion with representatives of the Central Bank, the Ministry of Finance and the Chamber of Accounts.
As I see it, the Sovereign Wealth Fund could have been used more actively. When a rainy day comes, you are supposed to spend saved money, but we are not doing this much. I think that limits of the fiscal rule could be eased and more funds could be spent to develop the economy. We have achieved overall sustainability, great success in managing inflation risks. So my expert opinion is that we could in this situation afford to make the fiscal rule more flexible on focus on the development objective.
KEY RATE
I do not see any reasons that would urge the CB to go for a higher rate. It is for the first time that in a critical situation the CB did not raise the rate but on the opposite brought it down four times in a row. From the viewpoint of inflationary expectations now there are no reasons to raise it. We have become like most countries with developed economies, where regulators reduce rates to support economic growth. And zero rate is something that I do not like. I think it is perilous both for banks, and for investments and for economy on the whole. Today we have 4,25% rate- and it is good, it enables cheaper lending to the economy, reducing the debt burden both for enterprises and private persons.
NON-PERFORMING LOANS – WHAT LEVE OF NPLs COULD BE EXPECTED AFTER RESTRUCTURIZATIONS?
Overall there are varying forecasts for the sector in relation to the share of non-performing loans which could become past-due: some speak about potential 30%, and some maybe about 15-20%. Since the start of the year we have increased our reserves by RUB 180 bn – this is almost 3 times higher than over the same period last year. But even if we take the whole restructured VTB portfolio and estimate the volume of past-due loans at a worst case scenario, it would be about 7% of the portfolio. This isn’t critical for us. This is the level that gives us no worries. Just for comparison – during the crisis of 2008-2009 the figure reached up to 10%.
DIVIDEND: DIFFERENT STRATEGIES OF SBERBANK AND VTB
Sberbank is one of the few global financial institutions that pays such high dividend now (50% of profit for 2019). Across the world, including Russia, due to the pandemic situation regulators recommend not to pay dividend. Most Russian banks did exactly that– Alfa-bank and Otkritie, for example, did not pay out dividends. European banks do not pat out dividends as well.
Another important factor: VTB is under sanctions, we have no opportunity to raise capital abroad. All we have is the Russian market, and here we cannot raise any shareholder capital either– there is a sanction risk for new shares.
Finally, it seems to me that there is a high load on the capital of Russian banks. Our risk-weighted asset ratio is almost 100%, when in the rest of BRICS countries it is 50-60%.
We, unlike them, need two times more capital to provide services to a comparable volume of business. High capital load is something we have been trying to overcome, but we have what we have.
Profit is almost the only source of capital for VTB. In Q2-Q3 of this year we were forced to significantly increase our reserves, that’s why we had to allocate a part of 2019 profit, which VTB had planned to pay out to our shareholders, for replenishment of the capital. This was a unanimous decision by the government, no lobbying whatsoever was required. Due to this we paid out 10% of the net profit.
If there are no major shocks, we hope to get back to 50% payouts. It is better for the CB as a regulator to have us increase our capital as much as we can, and the government is understanding of this. But dividend supports stability of shares, and generally it would be fair to shareholders, so let us count on increased payouts with reference to our capital load. Capital adequacy of VTB with all buffers as at the latest reporting date amounted to 11,8%. If the situation deteriorates, we count that the Central Bank will ease some capital requirements for banks, it is their authority.
Subordinated loans are also a source of capital, but still a limited one. We have a program for raising subordinated debt in rubles. We have registered a volume for RUB 200 bn. The program is a long-term one, we have no plans to raise the total amount this year. I think we will be placing subordinated loans depending on our capital needs and interest of investors in our bonds. Now two issues of our subordinated bonds are offered at the Moscow Exchange.
Initially we made each issue for RUB 10 bn, but in the first 1,5 weeks the total demand has already exceeded RUB 35 bn.
BUYOUT OF VTB SHARES FROM OTKRITIE
I’m not the one to answer this question: it is not our balance sheet, a decision has to be made by the Central Bank and Otkritie bank. Generally, we have such capacity: we can sell these on the market, there is interest from major investment and pension funds. But the management of Otrkitie has to make a decision, and the Central Bank should support it. It is not a burden to me. For me Otkritie is a friendly shareholder. Let them have it.
It is no worse than any American funds. The Central Bank says that it would not want these shares (VTB) were on Otrkritie balance sheet when it is sold. We have other concerns: continuous sale discussions may put pressure on the market. From this perspective a buyout of shares by major shareholders will relieve the pressure.
CONCESSIONS FOR BANKS
Given the protracted nature of the pandemic, an issue has probably to be raised on extending the concessions, given by the CB to the market. We never quit the dialog in this regard, though the CB is very cautious and is unwilling to reverse previous decisions – some concessions were terminated as of October 1. I think we will have to reassess the economic situation.
The CB has been very constructive and very helpful during the crisis.
We have managed to avoid a situation where banks could have been hit hard by all measures implemented by the authorities and the regulator. We always reach some sort of a compromise, and if the situation gets worse, then I am sure that the Central Bank will take some new measures.
USEFUL JURISDICTION
Qatar, let me remind you, in 2013 invested $500 mn into VTB’s capital. A good amount, a good investor. After some time the Qatar side proposed us to open an office in their country. A proposal of such a shareholder cannot be disregarded. Moreover, the region has become for us and our customers rather an attractive jurisdiction from the viewpoint of business development, legal and judicial systems. Qatar is a major producer of hydrocarbons, many companies have business relations in the region. A Qatar bank is preferable, for example, to our customers from Kazakhstan. We are getting customers from Uzbekistan, who find Qatar convenient.
We, being a bank, have joint trade financing projects, we conduct settlements for agricultural transactions, we are considering a number of other projects. Setting up a bank there is good business and a sign of long-term relationship.
We always view our international network as an additional toolset that we giver to our customers:
an opportunity to choose a jurisdiction, law that are optimal for specific businesses. Our European offices, offices in China and a number of other countries operate under this very logic. We had bad experience, and it was Dubai. But in this case the thing was that it is a special financial center, somewhat isolated and artificially created. Even with the use of English law it did not work out for us.
Now we have decided to work in Qatar and consider our experience there to be successful. We hope that further on many of our customers, especially those in the energy sector, will be interested in using the toolset.
$6 BN LOAN TO UNNAMED SOVEREIGN BORROWER 2 YEARS AGO: WHEN IS THE LOAN EXPECTED TO BE COMPLETELY REPAID?
The loan was issued for 7 years, it’s on for 5 more years, and the customer has the right for early redemption. There are no negotiations on early redemption. That’s why we can quietly wait for redemption for 5 more years.
RUSSNEFT
In late September we reached a restructuring agreement, but we do not see any issues with the customer, if, of course, there is no drastic plunge of oil prices. By the way, Russneft never had any issues with interest payments, no matter what.
They always paid the interest. The group has had a turbulent period, related to requirements of the CB and Trust bank. Now these issues have been rectified. Though the oil and gas sector is in a tight spot with tax payments. According to estimates of our experts, the company should be all right, not well-off, but all right.
DOUBLE DIGIT GROWTH OF HOUSING PRICES
This is a market law, nothing to be done here. Growing demand without adequate supply always leads to higher prices. The government is facing a tough task, and developers on the whole support increasing construction volumes. If construction volumes will grow fast, there will be no such growth of prices. That’s first.
Second: mortgage subsidies will not last forever. Now there has been a decision to extend the program till next July.
After that there will of course be a market and demand correction. Now many are concerned that we will get mortgage lending going fast via special measures and then we will stop it, and it all will come crashing down. I do not think so.
First, I do not see any bubble and I think that mortgage lending is very reliable. Our mortgage portfolio level of bad debt is 1%. In Russia the share of loans with minimal down payment below 10% is no more than 2%, which is negligible.
Second, banks are required by the CB to monitor debt burden of borrowers, and loans are issued mostly at a fixed rate. This means a customer will not have any issues with borrower interest rates – this is a major difference from the period when loans were issued in yens or at a floating rate.
I think mortgage lending has to be developed. We cannot compare ourselves to America, where the load burden in 2007 was drastically different, mortgage lending has to be developed, and housing construction too. I think that providing adequate housing to people should become a national idea in our country. It needs to be worked on. For people to feel good they need housing, first and foremost.
VTB AND YANDEX: SHOULD CLOSER SYNERGY BE EXPECTED
We’d like that. But it is important that our partners look that way too.
We’re developing a digital financial environment without aiming to become a hi-tech company of a kind or create our own ecosystem. We’re to make partners. This relates to Yandex as well. Over the latest years Yandex did not develop financial services due to their involvement with Sberbank...
We’re a small [Yandex] shareholder, and we don’t have a say in their decision making. This company is a leader not only in Russia, it is a world-class company. Of course we’re looking up to a full partnership, and we’ve already done something [towards that end].
This summer Yandex launched a fin-tech service based on a technology by VTB Capital Investments, which gave Yandex users an opportunity to invest in shares, bonds, exchange currencies at rates close to FX trading exchanges.
When we were offering shares of Aeroflot and Sovcomflot, we for the first time implemented a novel thing of that kind: our customers could buy shares on their smartphones, this was a new service, offered by us. And it was developed on the basis of VTB Capital Investments with the help of Yandex.
We set up dedicated teams to work on joint projects, the teams include IT and product division employees of VTB and our colleagues from Yandex. A synergy of technologies and financial services is fundamentally useful to both companies: it makes banking products more efficient and enriches technologies with a new product experience.
Yandex has many partners and interesting proposals, and we are ready to cooperate with them in niches, which may be of interest to them. Just like with other companies: this is a core principle of our partnership, when we are jointly developing various technologies, we are making network digital platforms.
We have met many times, but if you allow me, I will not speak of any specific advices to (Yandex in relation to financial market development strategy). Last time I met the top management of Yandex, when the deal (on possible acquisition of Tinkoff Bank) was still on the table. I believe that they (Yandex) need to develop financial services, but how and with whom - this question needs deep study.
GRAIN BUSINESS
The scope of work there is massive, and for now we have no plans to reduce our share (VTB owns 50% +1 share in Demetra Holding).
The situation cannot be drastically changed in one or two years. A lot needs to be done to develop the grain market’s infrastructure, rectify existing issues, to get this business optimized in Russia, and a lot needs to be done to be able to compete with global traders, which are currently selling our wheat. I believe that we will be in this project for the next three to five years, more likely five. This is a large industry; we’ll work on it. The project is managed by a very professional team, they are interested and we now think can we reinforce the team.
WHAT NEEDS TO BE OPTIMIZED IN THE GRAIN BUSINESS?
There are various things: we think that transshipment by smaller ships with insufficient sanitary examination is damaging to trade, and overloaded trucks, transporting grain, destroy roads... Many issues require solutions, to make things civilized and normal. Logistics need to be completed: access roads, railway hubs. To make this business more rational and more successful, more profitable, would require a lot of time. All these things are in our focus, as well as external market developments where we are more and more actively trying to enter with our Russian grain.
VACCINE INVESTMENTS
We are not manufacturers. But if companies decide to set up production facilities and come to us for a loan, then we of course would consider it and provide support, it is a very important thing.
This is essentially financing of production companies. I know AFK Sistema has been doing this.
The global vaccine market will be worth hundreds of billions of dollars – how is this business different from production of any other drug? Essentially there is no difference. I think this will be a profitable business. At setup phase– yes, it is a startup, but now, when vaccines are going out and into mass production – this is a manufacturing business.
DID YOU GET VACCINATED?
I have recovered from the disease; I have lots of antibodies.
AEROFLOT OFFERING
We participated as an anchor investor. We promised Aeroflot from the start that we would buy shares for RUB 5 bn and this was what we did. Now we’re going to wait when quotes will be picking up.
We never discussed any other figures: there were rumors (in media), that the whole issue (the deal amounted to RUB 80 bn) will be split by fiat and so on, but this did not happen.
We bought other shares at instructions by our customers. When we were running for the position of the primary SPO organizer, we said “yes, we will run the deal”. This very fact says that we promised to find investor for the whole amount of the offering. Ultimately some investors came through our bank, some did not, but the deal came through.
Aeroflot is a most liquid company on the Russian stock market and even before the deal it had a very diverse investor base. After the offering the company increased the number of shares in free float and as a result had improved its liquidity even more and expanded its shareholder base.
The deal was done on a short notice due to the pressing need, but this case is not unique now, there are other global airlines that raised money into their capital.
The airline businesses clearly keep suffering more than any other. International flights are severely restricted.
We think that the offering was successful and achieved its objectives. Pricing was transparent: a bid book was collected, a market clearing price was determined, and even the state bought the shares at the market value, participated as a co-investor. The price was set by the market.
If upon an offering a price fluctuates about 5% down, it is considered normal, there are always speculators on the market, buying and selling over several days. We believe that this is a fundamentally strong company. After the pandemic is over, there is every reason to believe that stocks will be picking up.
The amount (of the deal) was calculated by Aeroflot’s own management.
The government as the major shareholder and our experts looked at the amount and concluded that this was the amount Aeroflot really needed to get through a rough patch, to keep people, fleet, routes, which is very important. The amount of the offering was determined based on needs, this is the amount that according to everyone would let Aeroflot curb this hard period.
ON REVERTING THE AGD (ARCHANGELSKGEOLOGODOBYCHA) DEAL
Our position here is very clear: we can rescind it if [we’re] fully recompensed. So far, we have been offered to get only some of the money back, with deductions. We are not ok with that.
We have a surefire legal position on this case, we are a bona fide lender, and this company is pledged to us. If they pay us back – fine. We don’t care if this business will then go to Otkrytie or Lukoil. If we don’t get the money back, we’ll take over this business to get the credits repaid.
This I a perfectly strong legal position.
Will they take us to court? We’ll go to court no problem, although I don’t like this.
I think favourably of the stance taken by Orkrytiye, but I can’t see how a deal made three years ago can be severed. The price was too high? Don’t be ridiculous. If we use this trick, every new owner could invalidate their predecessors’ deals claiming that ‘the price was too high’. The price tag was put by investment banks, US banks among others. But if the deal is still reverted, and we get our money back – we’re okay with that. The fewer law suits, the better. If they let us go with our money, we’ll move on.
DO YOU EXPECT CHANGES IN SBREBANK TEAM AFTER SHAREHOLDER CHANGE?
It’s not a question I should take. However, I could ask you back – why? Sber has a very good, efficient management team. Of course German Oskarovich [Gref] is changing his deputies or line managers from time to time, but I cannot see reasons for a major overhaul. This is our leading bank, and it is run well. All’s good and quiet, keep your money with Sberbank, if not VTB. Sorry – Sber, not Sberbank.
Some time ago, VTB was also taken from the Cnetral Bank and handed over to the government – so what’s the big deal?
German Oskarovich [Gref] is a man of influence, and he knows all cabinet ministers very well, so I’m certain that he will be working hand in glove with the new shareholder.
In fact, I think this was the right thing to do. The Central Bank shouldn’t have a share in commercial banks, and they don’t need this.
After a while, this process will come to completion. The Central Bank will sell off its legacy shares, and will be just regulator. I believe this is what the Central Bank board is trying to achieve, step by step.
HAVE THERE ANY BOG REALIZATIIONS FOR YOU OVER THIS YEAR?
This year has been an eye-opener for me in many aspects. I believe that humankind needs to realign its development priorities.
I believe that, with all rapid digitization, we shouldn’t overlook the flipside of this process. We can now be working from anywhere in the world, we’ve grown so perfectly digitalized.
That’s good, and that’s right, but we have come to realize that all our grand undertakings and even trivial vacation plans can be ruined in the wink of time. When kids have to study gazing at computer screens, and when people get off their rollers having been confined to their apartments for four or eight weeks…
Perhaps we need to come to think that controlling epidemics and caring about the environment and crucial issues that must be put very high on the international agenda, as a pivotal issue for international and domestic policies. Diseases and environmental ailments are throwing us back, this is something that poses a threat to human lives, and we’ve got to face it. I think this is far more important than rolling out 5G [networks], really.
I watched an English feature film on the pandemic. It was hot seven years ago. It showed people eating soap and never feeling the smell or taste. All of a sudden, we’re inside this movie – I can’t believe it. Perhaps we have to rethink our priorities. The economy plummeted 8% in Q2 alone because of the tiny virus – a little thing no one can even see, but which we’ve come to feel sharply. Not only because more people fall ill with it, but because it has brought about an economic crisis. Perhaps, for the first time in human history, a crisis was flared by a virus.
I believe we should rethink what we’re doing and focus on our joint efforts to control the virus and environmental issued. These problems swooped down on us like an avalanche, and we can’t counter them. The whole world can do nothing about them, the Great America with its huge economy can’t do anything about this....
So far, we haven’t shaped a deep understanding of this: if the ozone layer rips apart, like many people predict – what are we gonna do? No vaccine will help in that case. I would still like to see the world safe for my children and grandkids....
I believe this is what we ought to be busy doing. We smirked at the Swedish girl (Greta Thunberg), but things are going that way. The virus serum has become an issue larger than many other issued. This requires us to revisit and rethink our priorities, including the very fundamental ones – humankind, research and development, investment, etc.... It has never happened before that the whole world would be ill, the whole world locked down. We’re now living in a different world, a totally different world. And we’ve got to think how we’re gonna live this new life in it. This is the crucial question today.
Tatiana Voronova,Yekaterina Golubkova
- 11:30 – 12:45 MSK
- 04:30 New York
- 08:30 London
- 09:30 Frankfurt
- 16:30 Shanghai
First Deputy President and Chairman of the Management Board of VTB Bank
Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation
Governor of the Bank of Russia
Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation
Aide to the President of the Russian Federation
First Deputy President and Chairman of the Management Board of VTB Bank
- 13:00 - 14:30 MSK
- 06:00 New York
- 10:00 London
- 11:00 Frankfurt
- 18:00 Shanghai
Vladimir Putin
President of the Russian Federation
Video conference
President and Chairman of the Management Board of VTB Bank
Vladimir Vladimirovich
Yuri Alexeyevich
Since May 2011
JSC VTB Bank, First Deputy President and Chairman of the Management Board.
2008 – 2011
JSC VTB Bank, Senior Vice President; JSC VTB Capital, Global CEO.
2006 – 2008
Head of Investment Business, First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board, Deutsche Bank Russia.
2002 – 2006
Director, Head of Global Markets in Russia & CIS, Deutsche Bank AG, London.
1996 – 2002
Analyst, Executive Director at Emerging Markets Department, Bank Lehman Brothers, London.
1994 – 1996
Dealer, Senior Dealer at Currency Trading Department, JSC Incombank.
1970
Born in Ulan Bator.
Andrey Leonidovich
Since 2002
VTB Bank: President and Chairman of the Management Board, Member of the Supervisory Council.
1996
Vnesheconombank: appointed Chairman by presidential executive order; term in office extended in 1999 for another three years.
1995
National Reserve Bank: elected First Deputy Chairman.
1993 – 1995
Imperial Bank: Deputy Head of Foreign Investment Department.
1979 – 1992
Diplomatic service at the USSR Consulate General in Australia (1979-1982) and Embassy to the UK (1985-1990).
1956
Born in Moscow.
Anton Germanovich
Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation
Born on April 12, 1963 in Moscow.
Higher education. Candidate in Economics.
Fluent in German.
In 1985 graduated from the Moscow Finance Institute, specializing in Finance and Credit.
August 1985 – March 1987 – economist, senior economist at the Finance Ministry of the RSFSR;
March 1987 – May 1989 – military service in the Soviet Army;
May 1989 – January 1992 – leading economist, 1st grade economist, leading economist, deputy director of a subdivision, consultant at the Finance Ministry of RSFSR;
February 1992 – deputy director of a division at the Economy and Finance Ministry of the Russian Federation;
February 1992 – October 1997 – Deputy Director of the Budget Management Division, Deputy Director of the Budget Department – Director of Division, Deputy Director of the Budget Department of the Finance Ministry of the Russian Federation;
October 1997 – July 2003 – Director of the Macroeconomic Policy and Banking Department of the Finance Ministry of the Russian Federation; since March 22, 2001: member of the Finance Ministry Board;
July 2003 – May 2004 – Deputy Finance Minister of the Russian Federation;
May 2004 – December 12, 2005 – Director of the Inter-budget Relations Department;
December 2005 – September, 2011 – Deputy Finance Minister of the Russian Federation;
September, 2011 – December, 2011 – Acting as Finance Minister of the Russian Federation;
December, 2011 – May, 2018 – Finance Minister of the Russian Federation;
May, 2018 – May, 2018 – Acting as Finance Minister of the Russian Federation;
May, 2018 – January, 2020 – First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation – Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
January, 2020 – present time – Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
In 2001 rewarded with the Finance Minister’s honorary diploma;
In 2002 received a citation of the President of the Russian Federation;
In 2002 received a citation of the Finance Minister;
In 2013 rewarded with the order «For Merit to the Fatherland», 3rd grade.
Yuri Alexeyevich
Since May 2011
JSC VTB Bank, First Deputy President and Chairman of the Management Board.
2008 – 2011
JSC VTB Bank, Senior Vice President; JSC VTB Capital, Global CEO.
2006 – 2008
Head of Investment Business, First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board, Deutsche Bank Russia.
2002 – 2006
Director, Head of Global Markets in Russia & CIS, Deutsche Bank AG, London.
1996 – 2002
Analyst, Executive Director at Emerging Markets Department, Bank Lehman Brothers, London.
1994 – 1996
Dealer, Senior Dealer at Currency Trading Department, JSC Incombank.
1970
Born in Ulan Bator.
Elvira Sakhipzadovna
Governor of the Bank of Russia
Born on 29 October 1963 in Ufa.
Education
1986: graduated from the Department of Economics of the Lomonosov Moscow State University.
Career
1991–1992: Chief Specialist in the Directorate on Economic Reform of the Standing Committee of the USSR Scientific and Industrial Union Board, Moscow.
1992–1994: Chief Specialist, Consultant in the Economic Policy Directorate of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs.
1994–1994: Advisor at the Expert Institute of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs.
1994–1995: Deputy Head of the Economic Reform Department — Head of the Division for State Regulation of Economy at the Ministry of Economy of the Russian Federation.
1995–1996: Deputy Head of the Economic Reform Department at the Ministry of Economy of the Russian Federation.
1996–1997: Head of the Economic Reform Department at the Ministry of Economy of the Russian Federation; Member of the Ministry’s Board.
1997–1998: Deputy Minister of Economy of the Russian Federation.
1998–1999: Deputy Chairperson of Promtorgbank’s Management Board.
1999–1999: Executive Director of the Eurasian Ratings Service.
1999–2000: Vice President of the Centre for Strategic Research.
2000–2003: First Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation.
2003–2005: President of the Centre for Strategic Research.
2005–2007: Head of the Expert Council of the Organising Committee for Russia’s Presidency of the G8 in 2006; Research Team Head at the Centre for Strategic Research.
From 24 September 2007: Minister of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation.
From 12 May 2008: Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.
May 2012—June 2013: Aide to the President of the Russian Federation.
From June 2013: Governor of the Bank of Russia.
Member of the Bank of Russia Board of Directors according to Article 15 of the Federal Law ‘On the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Bank of Russia)’.
Maxim Gennadievich
Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation
Born on July 11, 1979, in Perm.
2000 — graduated from Perm State University by the major Mathematical Economist.
2002 — acquired the speciality of Translating Language Expert.
2000 - 2005 — Head of the Budget Revenue and Expenses Planning Department, Head of the Regional Finance and Investment Department, Deputy Head of the Main Department of Economy of the Perm Region Administration.
2005 - 2007 — First Deputy Chairman of the Planning Department of the Perm Region, First Deputy Head of the Perm Territory Governor Administration.
2007 - 2009 — Deputy Director of the Inter-Budget Relations Department, Director of the Department for Monitoring and Evaluating Effectiveness of State Governments of the Russian Federation of the Ministry of Regional Development of the Russian Federation.
2009 — Head of the Perm Territory Governor Administration.
2009 - 2010 — Director of the Department for State Administration, Regional Development and Local Self-Government of the Government of the Russian Federation.
2010 - 2011 — First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Moscow City Mayor and Government.
2012 - 2017 — Minister of the Moscow City Government, Head of Department for Economic Policy and Development of Moscow city.
09.2017 - 01.2020 — Governor of the Perm Territory.
Since January 21, 2020 — Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.
Awarded the Letter of Acknowledgement of the President of the Russian Federation and Diploma of the Government of the Russian Federation.
PhD in Economics.
Married; father of a son and two daughters.
Maxim Stanislavovich
Aide to the President of the Russian Federation
1982 Born on July 21, in Moscow.
2002 Bachelor’s Degree in Economics, Higher School of Economics.
2004 Master’s Degree in Economics, Higher School of Economics.
2002–2006 Economist, 1st class; Leading Economist; Chief Economist; Sector Head at the Balance of Payments Department at the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Bank of Russia).
2006–2010 Senior Manager; Director; Managing Director at Rosbank.
2010–2012 Head of the Analytical Unit at Crédit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank Russia and the CIS.
2012–2013 Chief Economist for Russia at VTB Capital.
2013–2015 Director of the Long-term Strategic Planning Department at the Russian Ministry of Finance.
2013 included in the management personnel pool under the patronage of the President of the Russian Federation.
2015–2016Deputy Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
2016–2020 Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.
2017 Since March 14 – Presidential Special Representative for Trade and Economic Cooperation with Japan.
2018 Chairman of the Board, at the Centre for Strategic Research.
2020 Since January 24 – Aide to the President of the Russian Federation.
Aleksei Leonidovich
Chairman of the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation
Born on October 12, 1960 in Dobele, Latvian SSR, in the family of a military serviceman.
1983 — graduated from the Economics Faculty of the Leningrad State University.
1983–1985 — an intern researcher in the Institute of Social and Economic Problems of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
1985–1988 — a post-graduate student of the Institute of Economics of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Ph D. in Economics. Since 1988 — Research Fellow in the Institute of Social and Economic Problems of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
1990 — Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Economic Reform of the Executive Committee of the Leningrad City Council. After liquidation of the Committee for Economic Reform, he moved to the Management Committee of the Leningrad Free Enterprise Zone.
1991–1992 — Deputy Chairman of the Committee for Economic Development.
1992–1993 — Chairman of the Chief Financial Administration for the Mayor of St. Petersburg.
1993–1996 — Deputy and First Deputy Mayor, member of the Municipal Government, Chairman of the Committee for Economics and Finance of the City Council of St. Petersburg.
1996–1997 — Deputy Head of the Administration of the Russian President, Head of the Chief Control Department.
1997–1999 — First Deputy Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
1999 (January – June) — First Deputy Chairman of the Board of RAO Unified Energy System (RAO UES) of Russia.
1999–2000 — First Deputy Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
2000–2004 — Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation - Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
2004–2007 — Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
2007 — Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation - Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation.
2012–2016 — Chairman of the Committee of Civil Initiatives — a community of professionals able to offer alternative solutions to the problems faced by the country.
2016 — head of the Center for Strategic Research, Vice-Chairman of the Economic Council under the President of the Russian Federation.
On May 22, 2018, on the proposal of the President of the Russian Federation, he was appointed by the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation to the position of Chairman of the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation.
Since November 2018 — member of the Presidential Council for Implementation of State Policy on Protecting Family and Children.
Author of more than 30 scientific papers in the field of economics and finance:
— PhD thesis on: “Comparability in the Mechanism of Implementation of Economic Competition Relations”.
— Doctoral thesis on: “Theoretical and methodological approaches to implementation of balanced and efficient budget policy.
Reserve officer.
Participation in the work of educational and scientific establishments:
— Dean of the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences of St. Petersburg State University and a member of the Supervisory Board of St. Petersburg State University;
— Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Gaidar Institute;
— Member of the Board of Trustees, Yegor Gaidar Foundation;
— Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Northern (Arctic) Federal University;
— Member of the Board of Trustees of the European University in St. Petersburg;
— Member of the Board of Directors of the Russian Economic School.
Participation in international ratings:
— In 2004 Aleksei Kudrin was named the Finance Minister of the Year by the British magazine “The Banker”, winning in two categories: “World Finance Minister of the Year” and “European Finance Minister of the Year.”
— In 2006 the British magazine “Emerging markets” named Aleksei Kudrin as the best Minister of Finance among the European developing countries.
— In 2010 the British magazine “Euromoney” named Aleksei Kudrin as the best Finance Minister of the year. According to the editor, Padraic Fallon, Kudrin got the award because he “...having overcome major political pressure secured establishment of the Reserve Fund, which allowed Russia to come out of the global financial crisis in a much better shape than the experts had expected”.
Vladimir Mikhailovich
CEO, VTB Capital Investments
Senior Vice President, VTB Bank
Vladimir Potapov joined VTB Capital Investment Management team in 2010 as Global Head of the Portfolio Management Business.
In 2013 Vladimir took over the business, becoming the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Since 2018, Vladimir Potapov has headed VTB Bank's integrated investment product platform - VTB Capital Investments.
VTB Capital Investments – the largest Russian investment management platform of VTB Group. Providing all types of money management solutions to clients. Total Assets under Management exceeds RUB 4.1 tn. The client base is over 2 million.
VTB Capital Investments unites: the largest management companies for Russian and international investors, brokerage services for retail clients, brokerage services for institutional investors, and FX services for individuals.
Vladimir studied at the Higher School of Economics and the People's University of Beijing, received an MBA from the Chicago Booth School of Business, CFA, and a coach of the Neuroleadership Institute.
Vladimir takes an active part in the development of the Russian financial market as a member of the world's largest association of business leaders “Young Presidents Organization (YPO)” and the Moscow Exchange Council, and is also a member of the Board of Directors of: Association of Professional Investors (API); CFA Association (Russia); NAUFOR; Moscow and St. Petersburg Stock Exchanges.
In 2021, Vladimir received 1st place in the list of "TOP-1000 Russian Managers” among top managers of financial companies published by "Kommersant" and the Association of Managers.
In 2020, Vladimir received the LCA-2020 award “Leader as a coach, Stars among us".
Alexey Borisovich
Deputy Governor of the Bank of Russia
Born on August 2, 1977 in Kolomna, Moscow Region.
Education
In 1997 graduated from the Faculty of Economy, Lomonosov Moscow State University.
In 2005 graduated from the New Economic School.
Career
2005–2008— economist, Deutsche Securities
2008–2009— investment strategy managing director, United Capital Partners Advisory
2009–2011— deputy CEO, VTB Asset Management
2011–2018— deputy Head of Research, VTB Capital
2018–2020 — Director, Monetary Policy Department, Bank of Russia.
Since June 2020 — Deputy Governor of the Bank of Russia.
Mark
Founding Partner, Mobius Capital Partners LLP
Prior to launching Mobius Capital Partners, Dr. Mobius was employed at Franklin Templeton Investments for more than 30 years, most recently as Executive Chairman of the Templeton Emerging Markets Group. During his tenure, the group expanded AUM from USD 100m to over USD 40bn and launched a number of emerging market and frontier funds focusing on Asia, Latin America, Africa and Eastern Europe. His career and influence has earned him numerous industry awards. Dr. Mobius has also been a key figure in developing the international policy for emerging markets.
www.mobiuscapitalpartners.com
www.markmobius.com
Jim
International Investor and Author
Jim Rogers, a native of Demopolis, Alabama, is an author, financial commentator, adventurer, and successful international investor. He has been frequently featured in Time, The Washington Post, The New York Times, Barron’s, Forbes, Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, The Business Times, The Straits Times and many media outlets worldwide. He has also appeared as a regular commentator and columnist in various media and has been a professor at Columbia University.
After attending Yale and Oxford University, Rogers co-founded the Quantum Fund, a global-investment partnership. During the next 10 years, the portfolio gained 4200%, while the S&P rose less than 50%. Rogers then decided to retire – at age 37. Continuing to manage his own portfolio, Rogers kept busy serving as a full professor of finance at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business, and, in 1989 and 1990, as the moderator of WCBS's 'The Dreyfus Roundtable' and FNN's 'The Profit Motive with Jim Rogers'.
In 1990-1992, Rogers fulfilled his lifelong dream: motorcycling 100,000 miles across six continents, a feat that landed him in the Guinness Book of World Records. As a private investor, he constantly analyzed the countries through which he traveled for investment ideas. He chronicled his one-of-a-kind journey in Investment Biker: On the Road with Jim Rogers. Jim also embarked on a Millennium Adventure in 1999. He traveled for 3 years on his round-the-world, Guinness World Record journey. It was his 3rd Guinness Record. Passing through 116 countries, he covered more than 245,000 kilometers, which he recounted in his book Adventure Capitalist: The Ultimate Road Trip. His book, Hot Commodities: How Anyone Can Invest Profitably In The World's Best Market, was published in 2004. Another of his books A Bull in China describes his experiences in China as well as the changes and opportunities there. His recent book A Gift to My Children is a heartfelt, indispensable guide for his daughters (as well as for all adults and children) to find success and happiness. His latest memoir Street Smarts: Adventures on the Road and in the Markets was published in February 2013. Recently in January 2018, his book A Gift to My Children, 2nd edition which was published in Chinese, was launched in China. And in October 2018, another of his book The Next Big Wave, published in Complex Chinese, was launched in Taiwan. Rogers had two number one bestsellers in Japan namely The Future of Japan and A Warning to Japan that were published in January and July 2019 respectively.
Miroslav
Director for Institutional Affairs and Chief Economist of Generali CEE Holding B.V.
Miroslav Singer ranks amongst the most significant Czech economists. He graduated in Mathematical Methods Applied to Economy at the University of Economics in Prague. In 1995 he received his Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. Before his appointment to the Bank Board of the Czech National Bank in 2001 he held senior management positions in the group Expandia (finance and industry) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (advising in restructuring).
Between 2005 and 2010 he was Vice-Governor and between 2010 and 2016 he was Governor of the Czech National Bank. Since January 2017, he has been the Director of Institutional Relations and Chief Economist at Generali CEE Holding responsible for Austria, CEE & Russia Region, since January 2018 he is also member of the Executive Committee. He serves in the supervisory boards of insurance companies of Generali, i.e. as a chairman in Generali Česká pojišťovna (CZ) and Poisťovňa Generali (SK).
Also he is a vice-chairman of the Supervisory Board of Moneta Money Bank. Among other prestigious appraisals he was awarded “Central Banker of the Year in Europe” for 2014 by The Banker – FT group.
Yerlan
Global Head of Emerging Markets, Amundi
Yerlan Syzdykov is the Global Head of Emerging Markets & Co-Head of Emerging Markets Fixed Income at Amundi, based in the London office. In this role, he is responsible for leading a highly skilled investment team working on debt and equity strategies that covers Asia, Latin America, Emerging Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He is also Lead Portfolio Manager on a number of our Emerging Market Debt strategies.
Yerlan has worked on Emerging Markets (EM) throughout his career. He has been involved in managing EM Debt strategies since 2000 when he joined Amundi Asset Management and has played a key role in evolving our investment capability in this area.
He joined Amundi Asset Management (previously Pioneer Investments) in 2000 from Bancroft in Paris where he had been working as an Investment Analyst for Private Equity deals. Before this, he worked with various companies in London and Paris within EM equity research.
Yerlan started his career as an EM Equity Analyst with Renaissance Capital in Moscow upon completion of his MBA in 1997.
Christopher
Managing Director, EMEA and Global Political Research, TS Lombard
His 25 years’ experience covering the political economy of Russia and other FSU countries, including time working in Moscow-based investment banks where he was a top-ranked strategist and political analyst in broker surveys, started with a posting in Moscow as a UK diplomat in the early 1990s. In the decade from co-founding Trusted Sources until its merger with Lombard Street Research to form TS Lombard in 2016, he has also been producing broader political analysis on EMEA regional markets and geopolitics. Academic work in Italy during the 1980s underpins his lifelong interest in that country’s political economy. He is a regular commentator on FSU affairs in broadcast media and leading op-ed columns. He graduated from Oxford University, where he was also a Fellow of All Souls College.
Stefan
CFA, Global Economist, Head of Macro Research, Allianz Global Investors
Stefan Hofrichter is AllianzGI’s Global Economist and Head of Macro Research since 2011. Stefan and his team are responsible for advising clients, in-house professionals and sales colleagues on global economic trends and asset allocation. He is a member of the firm’s Global Policy Council, which is responsible for shaping the mid-term “Global House View” on financial markets, and of the Global Fundamental Multi-Asset Investment Committee. In 2016 he was appointed to European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) Group of Economic Advisers. Stefan joined the firm in 1996 as an equity portfolio manager and assumed the role of economist and strategist in 1998.
Between 2004 and 2010 he also managed absolute return and alpha-porting multi-asset mandates, as well as traditional Global and European balanced portfolios. He holds a degree in Economics from the University of Konstanz and in Business Administration from the University of Applied Sciences of the Deutsche Bundesbank, Hachenburg. Stefan is a CFA Charterholder and a member of the European Association of Banking and Financial History.
Dmitry Nikolaevich
Head of Client coverage – Senior Vice President, VTB Bank
Mr. Snesar joined VTB Bank in 2011 as the Head of Metals & Mining Coverage. In the end of 2012 he became the Deputy Global Head of Fixed Income, Global Head of Fixed Income Sales. From December 2014 till May 2016 Dmitry held the position of First Deputy Chairman at Bank of Moscow.
Before his career with VTB Group Dmitry worked as Head of Investment Banking department at Deutsche Bank in Moscow and General Director and CFO at United Financial Group.
In 1995 Dmitry Snesar graduated from Plekhanov Russian University of Economics with a degree in Economics. Dmitry speaks English and Spanish.
Dmitry has been a Member of the Board of Directors at VTB Leasing and Member of the Board of Directors of NPF VTB Pension fund. Dmitry was a Member of Supervisory Board at VTB Bank (France).
Maksut Igorevich
Born in 1979 in Moscow
2004: Graduated from Moscow State Social University, now Russian State Social University
1999-2004: Held managerial positions in the IT and communications sector, including at IBC Group where he headed the internet solutions division’s business development department and also worked as Director for Business Development.
2004: Advisor to the Minister and Director of the Department of State Programmes, Infrastructure Development and Use of Constrained Resources at the Ministry of Information Technology and Communications of the Russian Federation.
2008: Assistant to the Head of the Presidential Executive Office of the Russian Federation. Oversaw the organisation of the work of the Russian Presidential Council for Information Society Development.
February 2009: Listed among the top 100 members of the Management Personnel Pool under the Russian President’s Patronage.
2012: Advisor to the Speaker of the State Duma of the Russian Federation.
2014: Minister of Public Administration, Information Technology and Communications of the Moscow Region.
2016: Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Moscow Region.
September 2018: Vice President for Digital Platforms at Rostelecom.
February 2019: Combined this position with that of RT Labs Director General.
21 January 2020: Appointed Minister of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media of the Russian Federation by Presidential Executive Order.
Mark Arkadievich
Doctor of Medical Sciences, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Founder and CEO of the Mother and Child Group of Companies and Doctis
From the date of opening (1994) to 2012 M.A. Kurtser was the head of Moscow State Budgetary Healthcare Institution Family Planning and Reproduction Center of the Moscow Healthcare Department”.
From 2003 to 2013 he was the chief obstetrician-gynecologist of the Moscow Healthcare Department.
Since 2017 - Head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Pediatric Faculty of the Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of Higher Education named after N.I. Pirogov.
M.A. Kurtser introduced into practice a number of advanced diagnostic and treatment techniques, including unique operations such as open intrauterine operation on the fetus for Spina bifida defect.
He is the founder and CEO of the Federal Group of Companies "Mother and сhild", which includes 42 clinics, including 6 hospitals and 36 outpatient clinics.
Mikhail Eduardovich
President of Rostelecom, Chairman of the Management Board
Mikhail Eduardovitch Oseevskiy was born in Leningrad on November 30, 1960.
He graduated from the Kalinin Politechnical Institute (Leningradskij Politekhnicheskij Institut imeni Kalinina) in 1983 with a Degree in Electrical Engineering - Electrophysics.
He has wide experience in high-ranking posts in Russian state and business institutions.
From 1986 to 1993, he worked in the Scientific Research Institute of Electrophysical Apparatus (NIIEFA in Russian).
From 1993 to 1999, he was Deputy Director and later Director of the Stock Exchange in St. Petersburg.
From 1999, he was a Vice Chairman, and from 2003 First Vice Chairman of the Board Council of the Industrial and Construction Bank in Saint Petersburg.
From 2003 to 2011 he worked as a Vice-Governor of St. Petersburg Administration.
In 2011 he was appointed Deputy-Minister of Economic Development of Russia. From July 2012 to March 2017 he worked as a Deputy President and Chairman of VTB Bank Management Board.
In March 2017 he was appointed President of Rostelecom.
Currently M. Oseevskiy is a member of governing bodies of the following organizations: member of the supervisory board of Digital Economy Autonomous Not-for-profit Organization, T2 RTC Holding LLC, member of the board of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, member of the board of directors of Votron LLC, and member of the board of trustees of Joint-stock company Non-state pension fund “Alliance”.
Mikhail Oseevskiy is Chairman of the Supervisory Council of Saint-Petersburg Higher School of Economics National Research Institute.
Tigran Oganesovich
Deputy CEO of Yandex N.V.
Tigran Khudaverdyan was appointed Deputy CEO of Yandex N.V. and joined the company’s Board of Directors in 2019. Prior to this, from 2015, he served as CEO of Yandex.Taxi, and following its merger with Uber, served as the CEO of the combined business. He joined Yandex in April 2006, and since then has led several successful Yandex projects, including Yandex.Browser and Yandex.Navigator. Tigran Khudaverdyan is a graduate of Moscow State University with a degree in Physics.
Tatyana Vladimirovna
Founder and CEO, Wildberries
Graduated from the Moscow State Regional Social and Humanitarian Institute, Department of Foreign Languages, specializing in teaching English and German language.
In 2004 Tatyana founded an online store Wildberries from scratch, with a total audience of 92 million customers, the online retailer operates in 17 countries. About 3 millions orders on average a day proceeds at Wildberries.
Around 200,000 Russian and international brands are sold on the online platform: from clothing, toys, beauty products, baby food to household appliances and electronics. The suppliers of Wildberries are Russian 400,000 entrepreneurs and companies, more than 90% of which are small businesses. 50% of the goods are made in Russia.
The overall sales of Wildberries for 9 months of 2021 increased by 89% year-on-year and reached 538.9 billion rubles. According to analysts of Forbes magazine, Wildberries is worth approximately $13.6 billion.
Wildberries takes 2nd place in Forbes ranking «30 most valuable Runet companies». Wildberries has been the largest online retailer in Russia in terms of online sales for five years in a row, according to the Data Insight analytical agency. The company ranks 4th in sales among all retailers in the country.
In 2018, Tatyana won the Veuve Clicquot Business Woman Award and the RBC «Entrepreneur of the Year Award». In 2019, she was included in the Forbes list of «15 Businessmen Who Changed Perception of Russia», and in 2020, she took 1nd place on RBC's Women CEOs list.
Sergei Eduardovich
CEO, Chairman of the Management Board, PIK Group OJSC
EducationTolyatti Academy of Public Administration, specialization “Finance and credit”.
Work Experience
1995 – 1998: establishment of Rosbuilding
In 2005, Sergei Gordeev established Horus Capital
Since 2006, a founder and the President of the Cultural Heritage Support and Preservation Foundation “Russian Avant-Garde”
2005 – 2010: a member of the Council of Federation of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation
Since December of 2013, a majority shareholder of PIK Group
Since May of 2014, the President of PIK Group OJSC
Ancha
Professor, School of Systems Biology
Director for the Chronic Metabolic and Rare Diseases Systems Biology Initiative (ChroMe RaDSBIn), College of Science George Mason University
1998 PhD in Molecular Biology (virology department), Moscow State University
2004 Doctor of Sciences in Genetics, Vavilov Institute of General Genetics, RAS
Expert in molecular pathophysiology and genetics of human diseases H-index = 39, cited more than 9000 times
Personal Youtube Channel “Professor Ancha Baranova» with a focus on health and longevity, 74,800 subscribers, more than 2 mln views
Author of the first Russian-language book “Coronavirus: Manual for survival”, May 2020 and many sci-pop papers in «Элементы», «Биомолекула», «Химия и Жизнь», «Наука из первых рук».
Invited expert on many Russian TV shows, including “Great Game”, “Doc Talk”, “Zdorovie with Elena Malysheva”, news talks on Vesti, Moscow-24, RTVI
Interviewed by “Voice of America”, BBC, news agencies RIA Novosti, RBK, MK, Lenta.ru and others
Speaker at private events of Med-C, Protek, InVitro
Vladimir Olegovich
President and Chairman of the Management Board at Norilsk Nickel
Born in 1961.
Vladimir Potanin holds a degree in International Economics from Moscow State Institute of International Relations.
Shortly after graduation, Mr. Potanin began his career at the USSR's Ministry of Foreign Trade, where he worked until 1990. That year, he became President of the Interros Foreign Trade Association. From 1992 to 1993, he served as the Vice-President, and then as President of the International Company for Finance and Investments (MFK), a banking institution. In 1993 he became President of UNEXIM Bank and Chairman of MFK's Board of Directors.
From August 14, 1996 to March 17, 1997 he served as the first deputy prime minister of the Russian Federation in charge of economic issues.
During his time in office, Mr. Potanin headed twenty or so federal, governmental, and inter-agency commissions. While working in government, Mr. Potanin was also Russia’s Governor at the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).
In May 1997, Mr. Potanin reprised his role as president of UNEXIM Bank. After the restructuring of the UNEXIM-MFK-Renaissance Group, he became President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Interros on May 26, 1998.
Mr. Potanin has served as the CEO and Chairman of the Management Board of MMC Norilsk Nickel since December 17, 2012
In June 2015, Mr. Potanin was nominated President and Chairman of the Management Board of MMC Norilsk Nickel.
Roman Yurievich
Roman has over 25 years’ experience in executive positions at leading Russian companies in the financial sector. He has represented the NP RTS Association, one of SPB Exchange’s key shareholders since 2001, and he has been the President of the Association since 2012.
Since 2007, Roman has been a member of the Board of Directors of a number of Russian companies, including Pharmstandard (2008–2015), the Moscow Energy Exchange (2009–2015), the National Association of Stock Market Traders (2008–present) and the National Rating Agency (2017–present). He has been a member of the Board of Directors of SPB Exchange since 2015, and he was the Chairman of the Exchange’s Board of Directors until 2019.
On October 6, 2021, SPB Exchange’s Board of Directors appointed Roman as CEO of SPB Exchange.
Vladimir Olegovich
President and Chairman of the Management Board at Norilsk Nickel
Born in 1961.
Vladimir Potanin holds a degree in International Economics from Moscow State Institute of International Relations.
Shortly after graduation, Mr. Potanin began his career at the USSR's Ministry of Foreign Trade, where he worked until 1990. That year, he became President of the Interros Foreign Trade Association. From 1992 to 1993, he served as the Vice-President, and then as President of the International Company for Finance and Investments (MFK), a banking institution. In 1993 he became President of UNEXIM Bank and Chairman of MFK's Board of Directors.
From August 14, 1996 to March 17, 1997 he served as the first deputy prime minister of the Russian Federation in charge of economic issues.
During his time in office, Mr. Potanin headed twenty or so federal, governmental, and inter-agency commissions. While working in government, Mr. Potanin was also Russia’s Governor at the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).
In May 1997, Mr. Potanin reprised his role as president of UNEXIM Bank. After the restructuring of the UNEXIM-MFK-Renaissance Group, he became President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Interros on May 26, 1998.
Mr. Potanin has served as the CEO and Chairman of the Management Board of MMC Norilsk Nickel since December 17, 2012
In June 2015, Mr. Potanin was nominated President and Chairman of the Management Board of MMC Norilsk Nickel.
Andrey Alexandrovich
С 2002 по 2006 год работал в Санкт-Петербургском государственном учреждении «Дирекция транспортного строительства» при Комитете по благоустройству и дорожному хозяйству Администрации г. Санкт-Петербурга, где занимал должности специалиста 2-й и 1-й категорий, инженера, инженера 2-й и 1-й категорий, заместителя начальника отдела транспортных сооружений.
С 2006 по 2012 год - заместитель начальника, а затем начальник Федерального казенного учреждения «Федеральное управление автомобильных дорог «Северо-Запад» имени Н.В. Смирнова Федерального дорожного агентства».
С декабря 2012 по сентябрь 2018 года - заместитель руководителя Федерального дорожного агентства.
С 27 сентября 2018 года - руководитель Федерального дорожного агентства.
С 27 ноября 2019 года - заместитель Министра транспорта Российской Федерации − руководитель Федерального дорожного агентства.
С 1 февраля 2021 года − первый заместитель Министра транспорта Российской Федерации.
Alexey Olegovich
2001-2011: Held executive positions in the private equity sector in Russia. He managed large projects for international and Russian financial institutions, including in the Far East – the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) and the Khabarovsk Territory.
2011–2013: Co-founder, director, board member and member of the investment committee of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF). Was responsible for investments in healthcare, energy conservation, commodities; supervised the creation of the joint Russia-China Investment Fund with China Investment Corporation (CIC).
2014-2020: General Director of the Far East and Arctic Region Development Fund (VEB.RF Group).
2015-2019: Member of the Supervisory Board of Alrosa company.
Member of the Board of Directors of RusHydro.
10 November 2020: Appointed Minister of the Russian Federation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic.
Maxim Yurievich
From 1991 to 1993, Mr. Sokolov taught at the St. Petersburg State University Faculty of Economics.
From 1992–1999, he was General Director of ROSSI Concern.
From 1999 to 2004, Mr. Sokolov was General Director of Korporatsia C.
From 2004 to 2009, he served as Chairman of the Committee for Investment and Strategic Projects of St. Petersburg.
In 2009, Mr. Sokolov became a member of the Government of St. Petersburg: Chairman of the Committee for Economic Development, Industrial Policy and Trade.
On December 4, 2009, he was named Director of the Department of Industry and Infrastructure of the Government of the Russian Federation.
From 2012 to 2018, Mr. Sokolov was Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation.
From June to August 2018, he was Chairman of the Strategy and Investment Committee of the Board of Directors of LSR Group. From August 2018 to June 2019 - CEO, Chairman of the Management Board and member of the Board of Directors of LSR Group. From July to December 2019 - First Deputy General Director of LSR Group.
In December 2019 he was appointed Vice Governor of St. Petersburg.
President of VINCI Highways
She has for 20 years held various positions within the Ferrovial Group, in particular in North America, where she had been assigned since 2005.
She most recently held the presidency of CINTRA in the United States.
She was appointed Executive Vice-President of VINCI Concessions in 2020 and President of VINCI Highways
Svetlana Viktorovna
From 1999 to 2003 she was a member of the Bar Association "Moscow Law Center", she carried out advocacy.
From 2003 to 2004 she was the Head of Legal Support Section of the Defence and Law Enforcement Ministries and Agencies Military Property Department in the Ministry of Property Relations of the Russian Federation.
From 2004 to 2008 in the Federal Agency for Federal Property Management she held the following positions: Deputy Head of Defence and Law Enforcement and Judicial Agencies Property Division, Head of Judicial Agencies Section.
From 2008 to 2017 she headed the Legal Department of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation.
From 2009 to 2012 she was the Associate Professor of the Department of Legal Support of Management Activities of the Moscow Institute of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Since May 2017 she has been in a post as Vnesheconombank’s Deputy Chairman – Member of the Management Board.
Vitaly Leontievich
1983 - 1991: Instructor, head of department, secretary, chairman of the Soviet of People's Deputies of Kirovskiy District, head of the District Administration
1992 – 1996: Deputy mayor - chairman of the Saint Petersburg Committee on Social Issues.
1993: Became the president of FC Zenit.
In 2001, the Russian Football Premier League was formed at the initiative of V. Mutko. He is a member of the Russian Football Union Executive Committee, President of the Russian Football Premier League and Vice-President of the Football Federation of Saint Petersburg and North-West Russia.
2002: Elected to the Executive Committee of the Russian Paralympic Committee. Headed the Special Olympic Committee of Saint Petersburg on a voluntary basis for 13 years. The Committee is engaged in the rehabilitation of people with congenital intellectual disabilities. Headed the "Golden Pelican" Charity Foundation for 10 years.
2003: Appointed a member of the Federation Council in the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation - the representative of the Federation from the Government of Saint Petersburg.
2008: Appointed Federal Minister of Sports, Tourism and Youth Policy of the Russian Federation.
2012 – 2016: Minister of Sports of the Russian Federation.
2016 – 2020: Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation.
29 January 2020: Appointed CEO of JSC "DOM.RF".
Vyacheslav Petrovich
2006 – 2014: Senior Deputy CEO for Construction, CEO, Director, Federal State Government Institution Directorate for the Construction of the St Petersburg Bypass of the Federal Road Agency
2014 – 2015: Deputy Minister of Transport for the Republic of Crimea, Ministry of Transport for the Republic of Crimea
2015: Advisor to the Head of the Federal Road Agency
2015 – 2018: Head of the Central Russia Federal Highway Department of the Federal Road Agency Federal Budget-Funded Institution (Tsentravtomagistral FBFI)
2018 – 2019: First Deputy Chairman of the technical policy board at the «Russian Highways» State Company
6 February 2019: Appointed Chairman of the Management Board, «Russian Highways» State Company
Alexey Vladimirovich
Born on 08/13/1959 in Moscow.
Since 1999 – General director of the JSC (Joint Stock Company) “DSK “AVTOBAN”
Sociopolitical activity
Since 2001 - Deputy of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug-Ugra Duma. Since 2008 - Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the charity fund "Blago Daru" for children with CNS diseases. Since 2012 - Founder of the charity fund of local communities "WE ARE TOGETHER".
Awards
The honorary title "Honored Builder of the Russian Federation", 1996
The medal of the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, II degree, 2001
Peter the Great Medal "For Labour Valour", 2004
The memorable sign "75 years of the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug - Ugra", 2005
The medal "Honorary road builder of the CIS", 2007
Sign of the Governor of the Moscow region "For the useful", 2009
The Patriarchal badge "700th anniversary of St. Sergius of Radonezh", 2014
The Order of Honor “Merit in the field of transport and many years of conscientious work” (the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation), 2016
The medal "For special services to the Kaluga region" III degree, 2016
The honorary Badge of the Governor of the Kaluga Region "For personal contribution to the Kaluga Region development", 2017
Nikolai Alexandrovich
From 1981 to 1989 he worked in the Territorial Firm "Mostootryad-15" - a branch of JSC "Mostostroy-11" as a construction master, work supervisor, senior work supervisor, deputy chief engineer, acting chief engineer.
From 1989 to 2008, he was the director of the Territorial Firm "Mostootryad-36" - a branch of OJSC "Mostostroy-11".
In 2008, by the meeting of shareholders of JSC Mostostroy-11, he was elected General Director of the joint-stock company.
Dr. Stefan Schulte is Chairman of the Executive Board of Fraport AG. He heads the Fraport Group and is responsible for the International Activities & Services business segment. Organizational units reporting directly to him include Global Investments and Management; Airport Expansion South; Corporate Development, Environment and Sustainability; and Corporate Communications.
Dr. Schulte joined Fraport in 2003, initially as CFO, with responsibility for commercial operations, IT services and affiliated companies. He was appointed Vice-Chairman of the Executive Board of Fraport AG in April 2007, assuming responsibility for Traffic and Terminal Management; Airport Expansion; Security, Real Estate and Facility Management; and Legal Affairs. Dr. Schulte has been Chairman of the Executive Board since September 2009.
Dr. Schulte was a Member of the Executive Board and Director of Labor Relations at Cologne-based DEUTZ AG between 2001 and 2003, where he was responsible for commercial activities, human resources and legal affairs.
From 1996 to 2000, he first worked as Divisional Director Controlling and Interconnection at Mannesmann Arcor in Eschborn, moving on to become Chief Financial Officer at Milan-based Infostrada S.p.A., which at the time was the Italian landline subsidiary of the Mannesmann/Vodafone Group. A banker by training, Dr. Schulte followed his degree with a doctorate (“Dr. rer. pol.”) at the University of Cologne. He began his career in 1991 in Deutsche Bank’s group development department.
Dr. Schulte chairs the audit committee of Airports Council International (ACI) World, the global federation of airport operators, and sits on the board of ACI Europe, the European trade body for airports. On July 1, 2018, Dr. Stefan Schulte took up the position of President of the German Airports Association (ADV). He is also a member of the supervisory board of Deutsche Post AG and holds various mandates with institutions in the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main Region and beyond. Dr. Schulte was born in Wuppertal and is a German citizen.
Virginie Maisonneuve joined AllianzGI as Global CIO Equity in June 2021. In this capacity, she leads the development of the firm’s Equity capability and investment offering. She is a member of AllianzGI’s Investment Executive Committee and International Management Group.
Virginie is a global investment leader with a 30 plus year track record of performance, team leadership and innovation. She has previously held portfolio management and CIO positions for companies such as Eastspring, Pimco, Schroders, Clay Finlay, Batterymarch, State Street Research and Martin Currie in various parts of the world including Singapore, New York, Boston, San Francisco and London. During this time, she has pioneered investing in areas such as China, “Quanta-mental”, Thematics, ESG and Climate Change.
Virginie started her career in China working as a consultant for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing while attending Political Economy classes at People’s University. She holds an MBA from ESLSCA, and a degree in Mandarin Chinese from Université Paris Dauphine.
Mr. Xu has 20-year experience in Financial Market.
Mr. Xu is currently Head of Asset Management Segment of CICC and has been appointed as Assistant President of CICC since March 2020. He joined the Investment Banking Department of CICC in January 2000, and became Managing Director in January 2008. He took several positions in CICC including Secretary to the Board of Directors Head of Strategic Development Department and Head of Firm Office.
As one of China’s first batch of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) professionals, he founded and led the Company’s M&A business since 2005. Mr. Xu obtained a bachelor’s degree in English from Beijing Foreign Studies University in 1997 and a master’s degree in finance from the Graduate School of the PBOC in 2000.
Yury Olegovich
Yury Denisov has been CEO of Moscow Exchange since May 2019. Yury Denisov has more than 25 years of financial markets experience, including leadership positions at major Russian financial companies.
Yury Denisov was a member of the Exchange’s Supervisory Board from 2008-2011 and again from 2013-2020. Since 2008, he has been a member of the Supervisory Board of NCC, which acts as central counterparty on all of the Exchange’s markets. Since 2018, he has also served on the Board of the NSD, which is Russia’s central securities depository.
From 2002-2010, Yury Denisov was Senior Vice President and Head of the Treasury at VTB Bank. From 1992-2002, he worked at Eurofinance Bank, latterly as Vice President – Head of the Treasury. He began his career at Vnesheconombank in 1987.
In 1993, Yury Denisov graduated from Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO), specializing in international economic relations.
Dennis DeBusschere is President of 22V Research and chief market strategist.
Prior to helping found 22V Research, he began his career in sales at Merrill Lynch. Dennis then went on to head Evercore ISI’s Portfolio Strategy Research and Quantitative Research teams and sit on the firm’s Investment Policy Committee.
Dennis has consistently been one of the top-ranked portfolio strategists in the Institutional Investor’s annual poll. His daily market note covers major macro and micro events, analyzing their tactical/short term impact on markets as well as their implications for longer term market themes. Dennis was the top ranked Portfolio Strategist in the 2021 Institutional Investor survey. He was the 2nd ranked Equity Linked Strategist and Runner Up in Quant research.
Dennis graduated from University of Delaware in 1999 with a dual major in political science and economics.
Alexander Anatolyevich
Executive Vice President, Russia Division and General Director of PAO Fortum since 2009
Born 1960
Previous positions:
1991–1999 - various positions at Solar Turbines Europe S.A. in Europe and the USA;
1999-2005 - Various positions at GE in the USA and Canada
2005-2006 - Chief Operations Officer of JSC OMZ
2006 - Regional General Manager of GE Oil & Gas (Russia and CIS)
2006-2008 - Managing Director of JSC Power Machines
2008-2009 - Investment Development Director of SUEK
2009 – Executive Director of GE (Russia and CIS)
Since 2009 - Fortum
Stepan Alexandrovich
Stepan was appointed Chief Executive Officer at SUEK in May 2020.
Career
Since 2004, he worked at the Russian office of McKinsey and was in charge of the electric power industry and heat supply in Russia and the CIS. Stepan supervised projects in the field of power generation, network development and operation, sales activities. Stepan has worked at SUEK since 2018, from November 2018 till May 2020 he was CEO of SGC. In this role, he solved the issues of upgrading the Group's energy facilities, developing the heat supply infrastructure, improving the environmental efficiency of power facilities.
Education and qualifications
Stepan graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. He specialised in regulatory and environmental aspects of the power industry.
Pavel Yurievich
Chief Executive Officer, Polyus
Pavel Grachev was appointed head of Polyus in 2013. Prior to joining the company, from 2010 to 2013, Mr. Grachev served as Chief Executive Office of the leading potash producer Uralkali and then of the Far East and Baikal Region Development Fund. Prior to this, from 1997 he held a number of executive positions in international investment and law firms.
In addition to participation in the Board of Polyus, Mr. Grachev is currently engaged as independent director on the Board of FGC UES (Federal Grid Company of Unified Energy System) and RusHydro. He has also previously served on the Boards of Uralkali, PIK Group (as Chairman) and Polymetal.
Mr. Grachev graduated from the Saint Petersburg State University and the University of Trieste (Italy) with degrees in law.
Natalia Vasilievna
Professor of Moscow State University, Department of Geography.
Director of regional program in Independent Institute for Social Policy (2003-2015), Chief Researcher in High School of Economics and Russian Academy of National Economics and Public Administration.
Member of Expert Board of Federal government till 2018, Expert board of Vnesheconombank (2015-2017), Expert board of Council of the Federation (2021). Expert of UN Development Program in 1997-2012 and in 2018.
Professional skills: Russian and CIS countries regional socio-economic development, urban and rural development.
CEO, Empieza por Educar Foundation (Teach for Spain)
Beatriz Morilla is a passionate believer in developing collective leadership.
Beatriz is currently the CEO of Empieza por Educar Foundation, whose vision is to ensure all children have the opportunity to fulfill their potential, no matter where they are born. Apart from her work at the Foundation, Beatriz teaches Sustainability at CUNEF and ICADE Universities.
She holds a Bachelor in Law, a Certificate in Accountancy, Transparency ExpertCertificate and a Master Degree in Taxation; she is also a Member of the Institute of Directors and Administrators (ICA).
Previous positions include: Head of Tax at Barclays Spain, Head of Sustainability of The Spanish Banking Association and Chairman of the Financial Education Committee at the European Banking Federation.
Pavel Yuryevich
Born on 1 August 1985 in Moscow
Education
2007: Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, degree with distinction in World Economy
2009: University of London, MA in Finance and Financial Law
Biography
2005: Senior Auditor for oil and gas sector at Ernst&Young
2007-2012: Senior positions in analytical departments of Alfa-Bank and Unicredit Bank, regularly rated among best analysts
2012-2015: Vice President for analysis of oil and gas sector of Russia and Eastern Europe at Morgan Stanley
2014-2015: Rated among Top 3 oil and gas analysts for Russia and EMEA markets according to Extel and Institutional Investor
2015-2018: Head of Analytical Center for Fuel and Energy Complex of the Russian Energy Agency, subordinate to the Ministry of Energy of Russia. Provided analytical and informational support to the Ministry of Energy in its key activities.
Since 12.03.2018: Deputy Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation
Governmental Awards
2017: Medal of the Order “For Merit to the Fatherland” (II class)
2021: Order of Friendship
