‘Tiny banks are limited in the scope of their activity and are now having a hard time keeping their share of the market. At the same time, the Central Bank of Russia has been imposing more and more regulations lately. This is why a great number of such small banks are openly or secretly preparing to sell and are even negotiating with their business partners (namely, large federal banks),’ Chairman of SKB-Bank Vladimir Pukhov says relating to the growing popularity of bank mergers and takeovers in 2006.

‘In one or two years’ time, we’ll see the how these negotiations will result in the emergence of new united banks. SKB-Bank has been keeping track of all the consolidation trends and is interested in offers from ready-to-sell banks,’ Mr. Pukhov said.