Andrei Akimov, head of Russian bank Gazprombank (left) September 21, 2017. GRIGORIY SISOEV / SPUTNIK VIA AFP
It is the channel that Westerners set up to continue paying for gas supplies imported from Russia. Gazprombank, the financial arm of Russian energy giant Gazprom, the country’s third-largest financial institution, has been largely spared waves of financial sanctions imposed by the West to weaken Moscow in retaliation for the February 24 invasion of Ukraine.
Moreover, the European Union (EU) made no secret of it: when the 27 member states made the unprecedented decision in early March to disconnect seven Russian banks from the Swift international financial system, they did not register Gazprombank with their due to the heavy reliance of several European countries on Russian Gas.
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Gazprombank is keeping a low profile. It doesn’t advertise too much, it’s not listed on the stock exchange, and its participation isn’t clearly legible. His boss, Andrei Akimov, has no political background and stays away from the media, sums up a financier who knows the establishment well. In the shadow of the gas giant Gazprom, the bank still serves the interests of the Kremlin and Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.
A key player in the Russian economy
Banking has grown rapidly and has become a key player in the Russian economy. It finances companies in the mining, chemical or energy sectors, from oil exploration to the nuclear industry to equipment manufacturers.
As a financial instrument at the heart of the country’s major industrial projects, the bank is notably the co-lender of the Yamal-Europe project for the construction of a gas pipeline linking Siberia with the old continent. It also has a small-scale retail banking operation – with nearly 5 million retail customers – to collect deposits and establish a branch network in the area.
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The institution has also opened some subsidiaries and offices abroad, including one in Switzerland. “In this way, Gazprombank was able to work with all international banks through syndications to finance their projects,” testifies Matthieu Lacaze, a former banker specializing in commodities. It also recruited foreign bankers to learn the business of international banking and debt issuance. »
“Doing business outside of the historic shareholder”
The rise of Kirill Shamalov highlights the close ties between the establishment and the Kremlin. In 2005, this 23-year-old law graduate from St. Petersburg University joined the legal department of Gazprombank. He becomes Vladimir Putin’s son-in-law in 2013 by marrying his youngest daughter Katerina Tikhonova. He doesn’t stay in business, but he owes his immense fortune to Gazprombank.
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