Vostochny Bank

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In 2010 it purchased Consumer Bank, a Russian subsidiary of Banco Santander, and Morgan Stanley's City Mortgage Bank.{{Cite web |date=2 July 2010 |title=Morgan Stanley sold the City Mortage Bank |url=https://www.forbes.ru/news/52113-morgan-stanley-prodal-gorodskoi-ipotechnyi-bank |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=Forbes}} In 2015 the bank reduced its workforce by half, laying off 4,000 employees.{{Cite news |title=25,000 Employees Fired From Russian Retail Banks This Year |url=https://themoscowtimes.com/articles/25000-employees-fired-from-russian-retail-banks-this-year-50850 |access-date=29 August 2017 |work=The Moscow Times |language=en}} In 2016 it merged with Uniastrum Bank.

After the merger, Uniastrum bank owner Artem Avetisyan acquired a 32% stake in Vostochny via his Finvision Holdings. At that time, Baring Vostok Capital Partners investment fund controlled 51.2% of Vostochny via Evision Holdings. In 2018, a dispute took place between the major shareholders. Evision Holdings didn't let Finvision Holdings execute a call option for a 9.9% stake in the bank acquired by the latter in the M&A deal. In June 2019, Amur Region Arbitration Court ordered Evision Holdings to execute the option and sell the shares to Finvision Holdings.{{Cite web |date=17 May 2019 |title=The court ordered Baring Vostok structure to execute the 9.9% option for Vostochny bank shares |url=https://tass.ru/ekonomika/6440887 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=TASS}} London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) upheld Finvision's right to execute the call option and dismissed the arguments provided by Evision Holdings.{{Cite web |last=Pavel Kazarnovsky |date=17 June 2019 |title=An arbitrary court in London supported Avetisyan in the dispute regarding Vostochny bank's shares |url=https://www.rbc.ru/finances/17/06/2019/5d0749ae9a79477cfbf32c99 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=RBC}}

Baring Vostok abide by the decision of the court and executed the option in mid-2020.{{Cite web |date=18 June 2020 |title=Baring Vostok transferred the ownership over 10% of Vostochny to Avetisyan's company and lost control over the bank |url=https://www.interfax.ru/business/665706 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=Interfax}} Finvision Holding gained control over 42.01% and Evision Holding's share decreased to 41.63%. {{citation needed|date=March 2024}}

The arbitration proceedings between the parties took place simultaneously with the criminal investigation of the alleged misappropriation of 2.5 billion rubles of Vostochny bank's funds by Baring Vostok top managers, including the firm's founder Michael Calvey. Calvey and his colleagues were put under arrest. Some media linked criminal investigation with the arbitration proceedings.{{Cite web |date=7 June 2019 |title=Artem Avetisyan criticized the media and the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs Ethics Committee in regard to Michael Calvey's case |url=https://www.interfax.ru/russia/664281 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=Interfax}} However, both Baring Vostok and Finvision Holdings denied such claims and admitted that the corporate dispute was unrelated to the criminal case.{{Cite web |date=28 October 2020 |title=Vostochny bank's shareholders settled the dispute |url=https://www.bfm.ru/news/456760 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=BFM}}

In October 2020, Vostochny bank's shareholders signed the settlement agreement{{Cite web |date=28 October 2020 |title=Baring and Avetisyan's company settled the conflict over Vostochny bank |url=https://www.rbc.ru/finances/28/10/2020/5f996b9a9a7947da1e1a2e6b |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=RBC}} under which Baring Vostok refunded 2.5 billion rubles to Vostochny bank.{{Cite web |date=9 November 2020 |title=The collection agency from Calvey's case returned 2.5 billion rubles to Vostochny bank |url=https://tass.ru/ekonomika/9950781 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=TASS}} In August 2021, the court found the top managers of Baring Vostok guilty of embezzling Vostochny Bank's funds and sentenced them to suspended sentences.{{Cite web |date=6 August 2021 |title=The court decided on suspended sentences for the actors of Baring Vostok case |url=https://www.interfax.ru/russia/783015 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=Interfax}}

In March 2021, Sovcombank (a large private Russian bank) announced the purchase of Vostochny Bank.{{Cite web |date=2021-03-25 |title=Совкомбанк официально объявил о покупке акций банка "Восточный" |url=https://www.interfax.ru/russia/757743 |publisher=Interfax |language=ru}} The deal was closed in April. Sovcombank acquired 88% of the bank's shares for 8.7 billion rubles. By the end of 2021, Sovcombank acquired 100% of Vostochny bank's shares and completed the operational integration of the banks. On February 14, 2022, Vostochny bank was merged into Sovcombank and liquidated.{{Cite web |date=16 February 2022 |title=Vostochny bank is no more |url=https://tass.ru/ekonomika/13723381 |access-date=26 April 2022 |publisher=TASS}}

• Credit rating by the rating agency Expert RA: "ruB-", outlook — "stable" (assigned in June 2020).{{Cite web |date=2020-07-11 |title=ПАО КБ «Восточный» |url=https://raexpert.ru/database/companies/eastexpbank |website=Эксперт РА}}
• Analytical Credit Rating Agency (ACRA): "B+(RU)", outlook — "stable".{{Cite web |date=2018-05-17 |title=АКРА присвоило ПАО КБ «Восточный» кредитный рейтинг на уровне В+(RU), прогноз «Стабильный» |url=https://www.acra-ratings.ru/press-releases/729 |website=АКРА РМ}}
• Moody’s Investors Service: Credit rating — "B3", counterparty risk rating — "B2".{{Cite web |date=2018-02-15 |title=Moody's повысило рейтинг Восточного Банка до «B3» |url=http://www.banki.ru/news/lenta/?id=10284235 |website=Банки.ру}}

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Category:Banks of Russia

Category:Companies based in Amur Oblast

Category:Banks established in 1991

Category:2022 mergers and acquisitions