The Bank was established by private shareholders in 1993. Our clients are medium and small enterprises, as well as middle class individuals. Today Absolut Bank is among Top-25 Russian banks ranked by assets size and now has more than 3500 employees. The Absolut Bank infrastructure includes 72 selling offices in 24 regions of Russia. The main goal is to increase the Bank’s profitability and market share. In 2007 Absolut Bank became a part of one of the largest financial groups in Europe – the KBC Group, which purchased 95% of the bank equity. 5% is owned by the IFC. Absolut Bank, as an active participant of the corporate finance market, has practically doubled the credit portfolio for enterprises and organizations. As of the end of the 2007 this indicator reached US$ 2.7 bln. Absolut Bank is a leader in the Trade Finance market in the segment of medium-sized Russian businesses and was awarded by EBRD as Most Active Russian Bank in Trade Facilitation Program. The Bank’s stable growth in general as well as positive results in corporate lending and trade finance in particular can be attributed to a high achievements in International Market. Financial strength of Absolut Bank is confirmed by its high international ratings. Absolut Bank is rated by two international rating agencies and has solid credit assessment by Fitch (on the country level) and Moody’s. In 2004 the Bank was included into the State Deposit Insurance System of Russia. The total of the deposits of individuals in the accounts with the Bank reached the level of US$ 0.6 bln., which is 2 times higher than the analogous indicator as of the beginning of 2007.