Putin Ally’s Bank Becoming a Powerful Force in Russia’s Grains Market
- VTB now has a hand in about 20% of Russia’s grain exports
- Russia has become the top wheat shipper and wants more markets
A wheat harvest near Rostov, Russia.
Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
A sprawling Russian banking group run by an ally of President Vladimir Putin is fast becoming one of the most powerful forces in the country’s grains market.
Since entering the grain export business last year, Andrey Kostin’s government-backed VTB Group has loaded up on assets including port terminals, a rail-freight operator and a trader. Those investments could be worth about $1.5 billion, according to filings and Bloomberg calculations based on VTB valuations.