Uraltransbank’s May 29 AGM decided to pay out 2008 dividends of Rub 0.15 per preferred share (15% of the par value) and Rub 0.18 per common share (18%), the banks press service reported. The plan is to complete the payout of dividends on July 27 at the latest.
In addition, the lending institution will retain most net profit (84.9%) in order to increase its capitalization, with 9.4% to be allocated to dividends, 5% to be put aside to the reserve fund and 0.7% to be paid as remuneration to board members.
Uraltransbank generated net profit of Rub 479 mln in 2008 or 41% more than a year ago. As of January 1, 2009 the lenders assets reached Rub 13.9 bln (a 9% rise) and equity capital jumped 27% to Rub 1.98 bln, credit portfolio grew 4.6% to Rub 10.2 bln, cash held on clients accounts rose 4% to Rub 9.9 bln, including household deposits that increased 3% to Rub 6.8 bln.
The AGM elected a new board of directors that includes Andrey Efimov, pro-rector for economics and finance at the Urals Railroad University, Valery Zavodov, the lenders management board chairman, Nikolay Karpol, chief coach of public and sporting center Uralochka, Arvid Turkner, senior banker of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Stanislav Naboychenko, president of the Urals State Technical University, Vladimir Semenov, chairman of the Sverdlovsk Regional Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, Sergey Skuratov, general director of Urals Airlines, Ivan Popov, chairman of the foreign trade council at Vneshcooptorg and Yurgen Shram, an independent consultant.
Urals Transport Bank has grown from a regional branch of the state-run bank that launched operations in 1947. This is the only regional bank in the Sverdlovsk region with foreign participation (EBRD has been its shareholder since December 2004). As of March 31, in line with the Interfax-CEA ranking, it was in 137th place nationwide in terms of assets, 141st in terms of equity, 62nd in terms of retained profit and ranked 78th in terms of private deposits. The lending institution has 10 branches and 60 divisions in 32 cities of the Sverdlovsk, Tyumen, Kurgan, Chelyabinsk and Perm regions. The bank is a member of the national deposit insurance system.