Press Release

Uniastrum client Bumfa Group Ltd. is one of Russia’s biggest makers of household paper products and enjoys a monopoly over the cotton pad market. The loan, whose purpose is to replenish current assets and allow the Group to press ahead with business expansion, has been granted for a 4-year period at 13.7% APR, with real estate lodged as collateral.

Bumfa Group Ltd., based in Stavropol-region, began producing and marketing paper products in March 2001 and is today one of Russia’s major-league manufacturers in its respective field. The Group owns Russia’s only plant engaged in the full cycle of cotton pad production. Bumfa’s product mix numbers over 100 items, including, among others, paper napkins, paper handkerchiefs and towels.

In the words of a Bumfa Group spokesperson, teaming up with Uniastrum "is well worthwhile and makes financial sense, given that the Bank is modern-minded, provides a broad array of high-quality services, is customer-focused, and treats each client individually. In the short time that we’ve been involved with Uniastrum we’ve come to respect the high degree of professionalism shown by its staff and appreciate the excellence of the services on offer, which are underpinned by a principle of trust and a perceptible customer-first policy. Also important is the fact that the Bank has gone out of its way to tailor the loan specifically to suit our needs and to deliver optimum solutions, notwithstanding a number of atypical circumstances. All in all, our relationship with Uniastrum has given us an incentive to discover new ways to improve our business".

Lending to large businesses is one of Uniastrum Bank’s core activities. Since year-start 2009, its corporate lending portfolio has exhibited a solid upward trend, jumping 14.7% in H109 to Rb 25 bn. Growth in 9M09 totaled 31%, tipping the scales at over Rb 28.5 bn, with 14% falling to Q309. Total issued loans in 9M09 came to around Rb 20 bn, Rb 9.2 bn of which was given out in the third quarter.

Up until November 1 Uniastrum is running its U-Super Prime program, a loan option targeted primarily at large corporate borrowers feeling the financial pinch and in need of funds to cover day-to-day expenses and finance existing loans and other commitments. At a time when many Russian banks prefer to keep lending rates high, Uniastrum Bank remains committed to its forward-looking, recession-fighting strategy. One such example is its U-Super Prime option, which enables borrowers to take out upwards of $3 mn (or euro equivalent) on favorable repayment terms unparalleled anywhere on the Russian market. The interest rate on loans issued in foreign currency is just 10.7% APR, with a onetime disbursement fee equal to 2.7% of the loan amount. A U-Super Prime loan can be used for any purpose, e.g. for replenishing current assets (for a period of up to 5 years with installments at least once every 12 months), or for investment purposes (up to 10 years and subject to an agreed repayment schedule).

"The development of light industry in general and the paper sector in particular is extremely important for the country’s economy," says Dmitri Slonin, Director of Uniastrum’s Corporate Lending Division. "The loan amount extended to Bumfa Group Ltd. is substantial for the region in question and will enable the company to take its business to a new level. By lending to the real sector of the economy, we are remaining true to one of our priority commitments, which is to contribute to economic development as a whole, not just on a regional level, but nationwide."

Uniastrum Bank
Date: 16.10.2009