On 16 October 2012 Center-invest Bank hosted a networking event attended by business people from the Don region and representatives of Austrian companies that are interested in working with Russian business. The event was organised by Center-invest Bank and its partners, the Development Bank of Austria and Raiffeisenlandesbank Oberösterreich (Upper Austria).
At the networking event, Center-invest Bank’s customers were able to establish contacts with a number of Austrian companies operating in rapidly growing markets. These included: the construction firm Strabag, which provides services spanning the whole of the construction sector, and Wolf Modul, which is looking for regional partners to promote modular housing in the Russian market; the metal trader F.J. Elsner; BERTSCH-Laska/ Norbert Schaller, which manufactures meat processing equipment and packaging for the food industry; the headhunting company Amrop; and also Herz and POLYTECHNIK from the energy sector. More than thirty B2B meetings were held during the event.
Southern Russia is of interest to our Austrian partners because it is a rapidly developing region with a diversified economy and a dynamic SME sector. At the same time, companies in Russia are actively looking for ways to improve their performance. Avenues they are interested in include: using new technologies and equipment, improving the quality of goods and services, increasing the level of processing of agricultural products, and developing the machine building and tourism sectors.
“This event was the latest stage in the development of the relationship between Upper Austria and southern Russia,” said Dr. Vasily Vysokov, chairman of the Board of Directors of Center-invest Bank. “We have been actively building this relationship for over eight years now. We are putting SMEs in contact with one another so that businesses in southern Russia can implement projects that will increase their efficiency three- to fivefold.”
When selecting the participants for such events, Center-invest Bank has traditionally placed an emphasis on technologies and equipment for municipal utilities and energy saving. This event was no exception, with the Austrian attendees including the well-known heating equipment manufacturer, Herz, which is looking for new markets, and its competitor, POLYTECHNIK. In addition, the consultancy company KPC, which specializes in solutions for the housing and communal services (utilities) sector, was on hand to advise companies operating in the local market on energy efficiency technologies for buildings.
“Southern Russia is very important and very interesting for us because a large number of our customers already have business and projects here,” says Wolfgang Aschenwald, head of International Business at Raiffeisenlandesbank Oberösterreich. “For example, our customer BERTSCH-Laska is already supplying meat processing companies and large farms here in the south. We have worked with Center-invest Bank since 2005 and we have implemented many joint projects in various sectors.”
Center-invest Bank’s investment programme for SMEs, “Partnership for Modernization”, aims to promote sustainable development in the post-crisis economy. We offer the following products and services under this programme: loans to enable companies to introduce energy efficient technologies and upgrade agricultural equipment and technology; long-term business development loans; leasing and trade finance so that customers can acquire equipment from foreign partners; bank guarantees; and also advice and support from Center-invest Bank’s specialists, who can draw on international best practice.
In summer 2012 Center-invest Bank signed its second agreement with the Development Bank of Austria for access to long-term funds, specifically, a €20m credit line for a period of seven years.