BTA Bank to cut personnel by 25% in 2012
ALMATY. March 1 (Interfax) - Kazakhstan's BTA Bank will reduce the number of its personnel by 25% this year, said acting CEO of the bank, Askhat Beisenbayev.
"As a result of the staff optimization program we are going to carry out the bank will shed 25% of the employees and, consequently, reduce the payroll expenditures by 25%," he told a Thursday press conference in Almaty.
"This will be about 1,500 people," Beisenbayev said.
Currently, the bank employs 5,800 people, including 1,850 working in the head office.
He said the staff optimization program is aimed at improving performance and mobility of the bank, increasing its profit by reducing duplicating functions in different branches and adjusting the number of personnel to the current economic situation.
In December 2011 BTA Bank announced its plans to restructure certain parts of its financial debt.
In the same month the National Welfare Fund Samruk-Kazyna, the major shareholder of the bank, declared its support for BTA Bank's plans to restructure part of the bank's liabilities.
"The proposed restructuring will relate to the Bank's liabilities to its creditors under outstanding obligations entered into during the restructuring completed in 2010," BTA Bank said earlier in a statement.
In September of 2010 BTA Bank completed debt restructuring, as a result of which the bank's debts reduced from $16.65 billion to $4.2 billion.
After the restructuring National Welfare Fund Samruk-Kazyna became the major shareholder of BTA Bank (81.48%). The other 18.5% is owned by the creditors that were not affected by the restructuring.
On January 26, 2012 the shareholders of Kazakhstan-based BTA Bank rejected the proposal to conduct another debt restructuring.
In early February the bank formed Creditors' Committee. The bank believes the forming of the Creditors' Committee is a positive development and looks forward to cooperating with the Committee to work out a restructuring plan needed to ensure BTA Bank's existence.
The Committee is made up of Ashmore Investment Management Limited, Asian Development Bank, D.E. Shaw Group, FFTW UK Limited, BNP Paribas Investment Partner, Gramercy Funds Management LLC, J.P. Morgan Securities Ltd., Nomura International Plc and VR Capital Group Ltd. One seat in the Committee is reserved for the Swedish National Exports Credit Guarantee Board (EKN), another for the participants of the RCTFF (Revolving Committed Trade Finance Facility).
The Creditors' Committee was formed as a result of the recent meetings with the holders of senior bonds, OIDs (Original Issue Discounts), subordinated bonds and RCTFF participants.
BTA Bank also announced meetings of its senior noteholders and OID noteholders to be held on March 21, 2012. The meetings will consider and approve (subject to subsequent approval by the bank's general shareholders' meeting) the appointment of new Creditor Directors to the Board of Directors of the Bank."
"BTA Bank JSC is pleased to announce that meetings of its Senior Noteholders and OID Noteholders have been convened for 21 March 2012 to consider and approve (subject to subsequent approval by the Bank's general shareholders' meeting) the appointment of new creditor directors to the board of directors of the bank.
According to the State Financial Supervision Committee, BTA Bank was ranked 3rd by assets among the 38 Kazakh banks in 2011.