Alfa-Bank's Aven: no problem with 'toxic loans'
NOVO-OGAREVO. Feb 13 (Interfax) - Alfa-Bank has a conservative loan portfolio and is not experiencing any problems with so-called toxic loans, bank chief Pyotr Aven said at a meeting with President Vladimir Putin.
"We are very conservative," Aven said. "We are having no problems with the portfolio at present," he said when Putin asked if the bank had a toxic loan problem.
Overdue loans at the bank amount to 1.5% of the entire portfolio, compared with an average of 4% for the Russian banking sector, Aven said.
Aven acknowledged that now is not a "simple time" for the global economy, since investors are pulling money out of emerging markets. That is primarily a result of tapering of quantitative easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve. However, Aven said, the situation in Russia's financial sector is significantly calmer than in other developing countries.
