Head of Sberbank of Russia: "Tentative Contacts" with U.S. Partners

According to a report by Jinse Finance, citing CCTV News, on June 19 local time, Herman Gref, Chairman of the Board and CEO of Sberbank of Russia, stated that in the context of easing Russia-US relations, the bank is holding talks with American partners, but these are currently only "preliminary contacts." As for specific cooperation projects, "there are no plans at this time." Gref also said that the overall condition of the Russian banking sector is "good," and that there are "no signs of a banking crisis" at present, though he acknowledged that annual profits will decline.