This paper addresses state participation in the financial sector. We take the example of the Russian banking industry to suggest criteria for a more accurate definition of public sector boundaries and an assessment of the actual scale of state presence in the national banking market.
This paper analyzes thirty-two cases including alliances, merger consortiums, acquisitions and partnerships between diverse major Italian companies in the Local Public Transportation Sector. In order to single out the principal trends, special attention has been paid to the aims of the players, their needs and the strategies implemented. The actions taken by the institutions and the competent authorities regarding the regulations have also had a very important role, mostly after the Law 422/97 (Decreto Burlando), that, by introducing transparent public selections, has forced Local Authorities to modify players' strategies to become more efficient and sustainable by promoting, liberalizing and modernizing the service. The players, accustomed to a competition-free framework, have had to face the change by M&A processes establishing alliances and collaborations, proactively redefining their positions, to ward off the threats of liberalization.
Up to now, the Russian banking market has not been opened up completely for foreign banks. This refers mainly to the still existing restriction to set up branches in the Russian Federation that will even remain in force after the accession to the WTO. There is a fear by many incumbent Russian banks of being crowded out by foreign banks entering the market with low-interest offers for business and consumer loans. Studies of foreign bank entry in other transitions countries have shown that this fear is reasonable. However, from an economic point of view the entry of foreign banks has increased the overall efficiency of the banking markets in those regions and led to a healthy concentration process. Both effects could also take place on the Russian banking market that is characterised by a comparably low borrowing to the private sector and a very high number of small banks.
This article addresses these questions by reviewing the potential effects of fo-reign bank entry in banking markets of transition countries. This is followed by an analysis of the current situation on the Russian banking market which has some peculiarities in comparison to the banking markets of e.g. former socialist countries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). This is mainly due to the size of the country and the existence of large state owned banks which are dominating the market.
Polish model of system transformation and its flexible approach to privatization of state-owned enterprises appeared to be successful. While the vast majority of East European countries as well as Russia suffered a GDP contraction, Poland goes on ahead, though at a slower pace. The article analyses concepts and mechanisms of privatization in Poland, reveals its strong points and opportunities which may provide Russian decision-makers with a necessary insight to develop strategies under Russian reality.
