Corporate Strategy

Development strategy

Securing a strong position at the banking market and the growth of the Bank’s share in the North-West region’s corporate business
Implementation of unconventional innovative solutions, introduction of the new products and high-tech banking servicing processes
Support of individual client interaction programs, aimed at long-term partnerships

Development of multi-functional solutions and providing a wide range of banking services at the international level
Expanding the network to implement all-inclusive services for corporate and private segments in St. Petersburg and Moscow
Improving the strategic management system and maintaining a high professional level of the Bank’s employees

Development strategy for the period until 2015

The development strategy of "BFA Bank" OJSC is based on the Bank efforts towards reaching and keeping strong position in the banking services market as a reliable modern credit institution providing a wide range of banking services, increase in a share of presence of the bank in the corporate business segment of St. Petersburg and Leningrad region, expansion of the branch network (including opening of subdivisions in Moscow).

CURRENT BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT

The last few years the Russian bank sector developed with higher rates than economy as a whole. Rates of increase of the bank capital, total assets, credits to non-financial sector, household deposits exceeded rates of increase of the gross national product several times therefore the relation of the basic indicators of the bank sector to gross national product also grew. Despite existence and development difficulties in the current economic situation, the Russian bank sector due to reasonable policy of the Government of the Russian Federation implemented together with the Bank of Russia, mobilized all necessary resources for break-even activity.

With a view of the further increase of the bank sector role in economy, modernization of the bank system, optimization of bank processes in 2009 a number of essential regulations intended for improvement of legal aspects of bank activity was adopted.

It should be noted that favorable development of Russian post-crisis economy, aggravation of competition requires all banks to optimize expenses for technology development, reduce the level of operational expenses with simultaneous growth of volume and quality of transactions and provided services. Rapid development of information technologies essentially changes conditions of banking services provision all over the world. The increasing number of banks opens up possibilities of accounts management and carrying out of transactions through Internet technologies.

The tendency of the bank sector consolidation, exit from the market of a large number of banks, the state line of priority development of advance industries which is a basis of activity of many clients of "BFA Bank" OJSC allow to suggest favorable circumstances for implementation of this development strategy and fulfillment of its basic elements.

STRATEGY BASIC ELEMENTS

1. Individual attention to each client
"BFA Bank" OJSC applies the individual program of interaction with clients that is a competitive advantage and promotes development of long-term partnership relations.

2. Innovations
For transition to a new quality level of relations with clients and optimization of interaction with counterparts "BFA Bank" OJSC continuously introduces the hi-tech processes, new bank products, non-standard innovative solutions.

3. High professional standard
Employees of the bank are highly professional experts in the field of banking activity, they perform their work in a quality manner every day which promotes growing trust of clients to the Bank.

4. Network expansion
For all-inclusive client service and maximum comfort of the clients in interaction, "BFA Bank" OJSC is planning further development of bank subdivisions network taking into account the proximity to current and potential clients.

5. Versatility
To provide maximum satisfaction of the client with a service level the wide range of banking services is attractive for corporate and private clients not only from investment viewpoint but also because of high-quality service.

MAIN PURPOSES AND OBJECTIVES

Objectives set for the Bank management by shareholders define the basic priorities of the Bank development for 2010-2015:

Building of a modern Bank management system;
Increase in a share of the Bank in the banking services market of the corporate business segment of St. Petersburg and Leningrad region;
Development of retail business and additional offices network for all-inclusive client service.

Taking into account the development trends of the banking services market the strategic objectives of Bank are defined:

- Formation of the TOP-100 hi-tech commercial Bank rendering services of the international level,
- Extension of the client base, increase of the performed transactions volume, and increase in a share of the Bank in the banking services market of the corporate business segment of St. Petersburg and Leningrad region,
- Gaining access to international financing, centralized resources (obtaining of the international credit rating no lower than Ваа3.ru and B respectively by Moodys Rating Agency scale),
- Development of retail business,
- Introduction and development of modern marketing and PR methods - formation of the Bank image with the organization of effective management for implementation of strategic management,
- Improvement of staff relations methods.

Short-term objectives of the Bank are:

- Becoming one of the ТОP-100 largest Russian banks by amount of assets and capital.
- Receipt of the license for the right of opening and maintaining of bank accounts of individuals and attraction of cash resources of individuals to deposits.
- Entering into deposit insurance system.
- Receipt of the license for broker activity and the license for depositary activity.
- Opening of subdivisions of the Bank for all-inclusive service of legal entities and individuals in St. Petersburg and Moscow.
- Development of corporate management procedures based on the international standards.

MAIN ACTIVITIES

Attraction of resources

The Bank resources attraction should be done by the following basic lines:

To provide gradual transition from short-term to long-term resources by attraction of corporate clients for service.
To organize individual service of legal entities, for the purpose of assignment of a part of resources different by volume of business of corporate clients in the Bank.
To develop the special service conditions for work with the state-financed organizations, insurance companies, non-state pension funds and constituents of the federation.

The urgent question of legal entities resources attraction is issue of promissory notes, bills and bank certificates.

Placement of resources

The bank considers investments in securities one of the ways of effective investment of its own resources and clients resources for the purpose of receiving income.
The trading securities portfolio is an effective instrument reducing expenses for maintenance of short-term liquidity of the Bank, a necessary condition for development of client transactions, an instrument for acquisition of income from arbitration transactions.
The bank plans to build trading portfolios both in the market of the state securities, and in the market of corporate securities.

Crediting

The orientation to all-inclusive service involves providing of credit services and instruments for all target groups of consumers and is considered as a necessary condition of all-inclusive service of the bank.
Credit investments in the foreseeable future remain the priority instrument for formation of the bank assets.
We plan to expand Bank possibilities for application of non-credit instruments, such as:

factoring;
trade finance transactions;
guarantees.

The platform for participation of the Bank in the interbank crediting market for the purpose of optimum liquidity management taking risks into account is being developed.

Technology improvement

Bank considers system development of information technologies as an obligatory condition to maintain competitiveness in the market of credit and financial services and to provide safe functioning.

Improvement of bank technologies will be carried out proceeding from:

priority lines of business development;
increase of the Bank manageability.

Further development of the telecommunication infrastructure is planned. The combination of a "Client-Bank" system on the basis of Internet technologies and own reliable settlement system providing necessary speed of payments should enable the Bank to meet requirements of settlements information safety with use of Internet.

Marketing

The purposes in view and development objectives require to adopt a marketing policy of the Bank meeting preferences and requirements of target groups of current and potential clients. The bank will carry out the analysis of possibility of introduction in process of communication with clients of the following methods:

- Follow-up - effective technology of clients’ incoming inquiries converting.
- The tendency of gradual transition from off-line communications to on-line contact. It is a quite natural process and today we cannot do without virtual communication with clients.

Corporate business development

Development of the Bank corporate business will be based on maintaining of loyalty of an available range of clients, attraction of new target groups of clients, maintaining of long-term mutually advantageous cooperation with them. The principle of all-inclusive client service, a combination of standard technologies of rendering services with individual attention will be taken as a basis of client relations.

The Bank includes in target groups of potential clients the economic entities requiring services of the foreign trade financing; focused on import and export of products; having large volumes of free cash resources; developing trading business with use of modern forms of settlement, including plastic cards; being participants of a uniform process chain of manufacture and sale of products along with traditional clients of the bank; companies and enterprises of branches which have a development priority according to the state forecast (mechanical engineering, construction, industrial production etc.).

For development of the best service practice for various categories of economic entities segmentation of the client base by priority for the Bank and range of demanded and consumed banking services will be carried out. According to the performed segmentation the effective tariff policy will be developed, which allows application of a flexible approach to formation of the prices for products to strategic clients and maximum unification of the prices for other clients.

Among corporate business development lines we can specify:

- Development and implementation of the client policy allowing to efficiently develop the partner relation with a maximum number of Clients-representatives of the large, medium and a small business, public offices and institutions, constituents of the federation and municipal authorities.
- Diversification of the client base, attraction of Clients from leading branches of the Russian economy.
- Increase of possibilities for crediting of corporate clients. Introduction of new credit products.
- Expansion of a range of services in settlement service in rubles and foreign currencies.
- Introduction of services in financing of investment projects of Clients.
- Extension of a range of services in trade financing and trade finance transactions.
- Development of electronic channels for bank products sale.
- Introduction of complexes of interconnected products (packages) for corporate clients.
- Financing of equipment leasing transactions.

Retail business development

Retail business development is considered to be one of the priority lines of the Bank activity for the coming years and in the longer term.

Development of competitive advantages of the bank in the retail services market will be achieved through improvement of the bank products quality, completeness of the product line, and approach of the bank infrastructure to users of its services. The demand and competitiveness of retail banking products will be achieved through development of the product matrix focused on modern hi-tech banking services for individuals, including:

expanded line of investment transactions, including time and demand deposits;
development of consumer crediting of individuals - employees of corporate clients of the bank;
providing of safety deposit boxes.

Considering household deposits as one of the most stable sources of the resource base, the bank will regularly improve the deposit product line for individuals. Conditions of resources attraction to deposits will be simple and clear to each client.

Development of the bank products packages focused on target client groups will become an important element of development of the Bank retail business.
The bank plans to obtain the status of the full member of VISA International and MasterCard International payment systems that will allow implementing of the card project. Service of the international payment systems plastic cards holders will be organized by all supplementary offices of the Bank.
Plastic cards will not be further considered by the Bank as a separate product but as means for providing clients with access to the whole complex of the bank products connected with savings, settlements and crediting.
The increase in presence of the Bank in the retail services market will be promoted by established supplementary offices of service to the public, development of a schedule of the Bank divisions convenient for clients.
The special direction of retail business development is introduction of the products focused on high-income individuals and members of their families (Private banking).

Policy and structure of sales of bank products and services

The Bank aims at creation of the system of individual servicing including a full range of bank products and services meeting international standards. This approach involves:

product line management including assignment of the list of investment services and products of the commercial bank;
offer of specially developed individual schemes and technologies to the client providing development and optimization of client business and insurance of its risks;
assignment of personal managers to the client with necessary level of authority, providing of technological and information possibilities of the Bank and a wide range of consulting services to clients;
carrying out of a flexible tariff policy of individual service.

Promotion of products in "BFA Bank" OJSC is based on:

Professional consulting of clients: selection of a combination of financial instruments, drawing up of the individual financial plan, change of the client mindset by a competent substantiation of perspective character and profitability of long-term investment of resources.
Structured and balanced process of the Bank divisions interaction at all stages of working with clients, estimation of areas of responsibility (regulation of client orders performance time, very precise document management system etc.)
Client orientation of each manager.
Wide variety of investment products.
Availability - expansion of service offices in 2010-2015.
Packaging of retail products of various categories: VIP, Middle, Salary (the selected package defines the further level of banking service). Individual packages within the private banking program.
Cross-sale technology that will allow increasing the fee revenue of the Bank.

Advertising policy Process of creation of the Bank image focused on investment opportunities of the Bank and forming of current and potential clients’ preferences will be continued. The Bank finds it reasonable to considerably expand the information flow created by initiatives and use electronic mass media more extensively.

Each competitive advantage of the Bank, each new product offered for sale should be known and clear to clients, easily comparable and have an advantage over offers of competitors. We are planning to considerably increase volume of the information presented in the Internet, to improve informing of clients on standards of corporate service, conditions of offered products and services, technological capabilities of the Bank, to organize client seminars and conferences, target promotion focused on a certain group of clients, and to implement a system of target advertising.

CORPORATE STRUCTURE AND MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Corporate structure

The purposes in view and development objectives require improving of the corporate structure and management system:

improvement of coordination of actions of the divisions offering various types of products and services to the client, clear regulation of responsibility areas of each division;
implementation of practice of the target project groups creation focused on the solution of certain problems for development of new Bank activities.

Depending on success of the bank activity, environment aggression, stage of life cycle of the demand for products, current condition and desirable type of the staff, the Bank will modify both corporate structure and methods of its management.

Strategic management system

Changes in system of strategic management will be aimed at increase of subdivisions independence, their initiative and responsibility in order to decrease bureaucratization, reduce time of performance of standard transactions, and improve quality of performed duties.

Financial and management accounting

Development of accounting system and preparation of financial statements is defined by the following objectives:

maintenance of transparency of the information for shareholders and clients of the Bank
promptness of reporting
use of the international standards of accounting and reporting.

The Bank objective is to build a uniform system of management accounting meeting the requirements of necessity of the bank budget implementation monitoring and business plans of divisions.

Human resources management

To maintain high qualification of the personnel the Bank will carry out intensive work in the following lines:

creation and introduction of the system of regular certifications;
working out of the effective system of moral and financial incentives for the personnel;
development of the system of rotation and horizontal promotion of the most qualified experts;
increase of degree of independence and responsibility of experts;

The Bank considers development of human resources to be the basic condition for achievement of objectives in view. Development of the Bank corporate culture should be focused on creation in each employee of feeling of involvement in achievement of high results by the Bank, enhancement of the team spirit, creation of a team of associates aimed at achievement of set strategic targets.

Internal control system

With a view of effective conducting of bank activity the following primary goals of the internal control system are defined:

compliance of the Bank with the Russian Federation legislation and statutory acts of the Bank of Russia;
observance by Bank employees of the established procedures and powers in decision-making affecting interests of the Bank, its shareholders and clients;
performance of requirements to efficient Bank activity risks management;
making of timely and efficient decisions aimed at elimination of detected drawbacks and infringements of the Bank activity;
security of assets (property) of the Bank;
right recording of the Bank transactions in the accounting;
proper reporting allowing to obtain reliable information on the Bank activity and the related risks;
effective functioning of the Bank internal audit;
effective interaction with external auditors, state regulation bodies, agencies of prudential supervision of the bank activity, reliability of the accounting and reporting, organization of internal control, prevention and elimination of infringements by the Bank personnel of the legislation of the Russian Federation, statutory acts of the Bank of Russia, local statutory acts and professional activity standards.

Risk management

The bank carries out its activity within the limits of the risk management system based on the use of the general principles adopted in the international banking practice. The risk management ultimate goal is to achieve the best balance of risk and profitability as a result of performance of various transactions by the Bank.

The Bank has the risk management system, which allows taking them into account both at the stage of administrative decisions-making and in the bank activity. This system is based on timely detection of potential risks, their identification and classification, analysis, measurement and assessment of risk transactions and also on application of specific risk management method. During formation of the risk management system the Bank considered recommendations of Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and Regulation.

Management of bank risks will be based on the complex system approach which involves the solution of the following problems:

obtaining of timely and objective data on condition and volume of the risk;
qualitative and quantitative risk estimation (measurement);
establishment of interrelations between certain types of risks for the purpose of estimation of influence of the actions planned for limitation of one type of the risk on growth or reduction of other risks;
formation of the risk management system at the stage of the negative tendency onset, as well as the system of quick and adequate response aimed at prevention of risk reaching volumes critical for the Bank (risk minimization).

DEVELOPMENT OF THE BANK NETWORK

Orientation of the bank activity to growth and increase of the basic business lines efficiency will be accompanied by the network optimization process.

The initial stage of network functioning within the context of the new mechanism of economic mutual relations in the Bank system will allow creating necessary information base for the analysis of efficiency of activity of each division. According to the estimation results and available potential for the further development of bank business, the most acceptable organizational forms of the Bank presence will be defined and implemented.

Creation of new structural divisions will promote increase in the client base and approaching of the bank infrastructure to a wide range of users.

Opening of internal Bank subdivisions is connected with introduction of new Bank technologies and products. The main lines in development of the Bank network will be increase of instruments for work with legal entities and individuals. Employees of the enterprises and the organizations, which are on corporate service in the Bank, are considered as a promising client base. However, for development of long-term cooperation with individuals the Bank should introduce such products and services which could compete with successful products. The Bank will pay special attention to working out of methods of effective interaction of divisions for working with individual and corporate clients to expand the client base and make the Bank brand popular. Besides implementation of new technologies, products and services, for the further development the Bank needs to open new offices. Supplementary service sites are necessary for the further development of relations with corporate clients of the Bank and for service of corporate clients’ personnel.

Opening subdivisions focused on all-inclusive service, the Bank takes the following requirements into account:

- advantage of new offices location, where the Bank presence is the most expedient at the moment and in the long term,
- technical and technological support of the network (equipping of supplementary offices with modern communication and document management facilities),
- organizational and systematic maintenance (administration, management of work and development of the network, interrelation with other divisions, reporting, accounting in the uniform balance),
- service of infrastructure entities (operational, material, transport, security protection, collection),
- staffing.

SUMMARY

"BFA Bank" OJSC strategy is focused on realization of the potential of the regional banking services market of the country and strengthening of taken positions. Shareholders and the Bank Management set a priority mission of stable commercial credit institution creation, making efforts to considerably increase in the charter and equity capital, open of new modern offices for client service, expand the client base, develop banking services. Receipt of the license for attraction in deposits of cash resources of the individuals expanding the Bank activity as the credit institution, entering into the deposit insurance system will enable new and current clients of the Bank to receive additional banking services.

In current conditions expansion of the Bank activity will allow carrying out of all-inclusive bank service, promote higher rates of growth of the capital, strengthen stability and solvency, contribute to professional and economic growth of the Bank and increase the importance of the Bank in the economy of the region.