Yerevan /Mediamax/. The total assets of VTB Bank (Armenia) following the results of the first half of 2008 made 113.15bln## drams, and as to this index the bank occupies the first place in the banking system of Armenia.

Mediamax reports that, speaking at a news conference in Yerevan today, General Director, Chairman of the Board of Directors of VTB Bank (Armenia) CJSC Valeri Ovsyannikov informed that the authorized capital stock of the bank made 13.906bln drams in the accounting period (2nd place in the banking system of Armenia), and the equity capital as of September 1 of 2008 made 22,79bln drams.

“The bank enters the list of three largest banks of Armenia also as to the volume of total liabilities (91.7bln drams) and as to the means, attracted from customers (38.5bln drams)”, Valeri Ovsyannikov stated.

Talking about the recent large investment projects of the bank, Valeri Ovsyannikov informed that on August 25 the signing of a loan agreement with “Electric Networks of Armenia” CJSC took place on providing a loan at the sum of $30mln for the term of up to 3 years. The loan is provided in the form of the first tranche within the framework of the agreement, which stipulates provision of a long-term loan at the sum of $70mln to the “Electric Networks of Armenia”.

In late September, VTB Bank (Armenia) will receive the first tranche of the loan (10$) from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), directed to crediting of small enterprises in Armenia. The total sum of the loan makes $30mln.

Commenting on the closure of the bank branch in Stepanakert, Valeri Ovsyannikov stated that it was conditioned by economic expediency and took place within the framework of optimization of VTB Bank’s (Armenia) branch network, as a result of which by the end of 2008 - beginning of 2009, the total number of the bank’s branches will be reduced from 80 to 75. In the beginning of 2008 the number of branches of VTB Bank (Armenia) made 89.

Within the framework of optimization, the supervisory board made a decision to close by the end of the year the branches in Nor Hachn, Yeghvard, Metsamor, Ashotsq and Stepanakert. “At that, we will suggest our participation in investment projects in Nagorno-Karabakh. We will also offer to provide services to our customers in Karabakh by means of the branches of Armenian partner-banks”, Valeri Ovsyannikov stated.