VTB (Foreign Trade Bank) had to direct 49.2 billion RUR, or 7.1% of its average annual lending portfolio to setting up devaluation reserves in the first quarter of 2009. This was more than the 4.8% spent in the last quarter of 2008 and is reported by the bank to be due to economic recession.

The share of overdue and restructured loans in the lending portfolio’s total volume rose from 2.4% in 2008 to 4.3% in early 2009. Nevertheless, the bad debt compensation coefficient still looks rather comforting despite dropping from 147.6% last December to 118.3% in March 2009.