MOODY'S UPGRADES TEXAKABANK'S (KAZAKHSTAN) LONG-TERM FOREIGN CURRENCY DEPOSIT RATING TO Ba1, OUTLOOK STABLE

/REUTERS, July 26, 06/ -Moody's Investors Service has upgraded Texakabank's long-term foreign currency deposit rating to Ba1 from B1. The E+ financial strength rating (FSR) and the 'Not-Prime' short-term foreign- currency deposit rating remain unchanged. The outlook on all ratings is stable. According to Moody's, the upgrade reflects an increased likelihood of support for Texakabank from its new controlling shareholder -- the Russian state- controlled banking major, Sberbank (rated Baa2/D-/P-2) - which recently acquired an 80% stake in Texakabank. As the new parent is much larger than Texakabank in terms of assets, equity and franchise, Moody's regards its ability to provide support as unquestionable. For the same reasons, Sberbank's ratings have not been affected by the acquisition. Sberbank obtained regulatory approval to acquire control over Texakabank in December 2005. However, there was still significant uncertainty with regard to the transaction, and alternative bids were also considered by Texakabank's shareholders, so that at that point the bank's ratings were affirmed. Now Moody's views Sberbank's commitment to the transaction as very high, and as the primary driver of the upgrade. Texakabank is the first foreign banking subsidiary of the Russian bank, although a project in Ukraine is also reportedly underway. If Texakabank is then fully integrated into Sberbank's operations in terms of IT systems, management and controls, this may also exert positive pressure on the Kazakh bank's E+ FSR. Moody's notes that Texakabank's Ba1 long-term foreign currency deposit rating is constrained by the country ceiling for bank deposits in Kazakhstan, and is likely to mirror its future moves. Similarly, the stable outlook on this rating is in line with the outlook on that ceiling, which was changed to stable from positive in May 2006. Texakabank is domiciled in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and reported total assets of KZT24.4 billion (US$183 million) and shareholders' equity of KZT2.8 billion (US$21 million) under IFRS at year-end 2005. At end-1H 2006 it ranked 16th- largest bank in Kazakhstan in terms of total assets. Domiciled in Moscow, Russia, Sberbank is the largest bank in Central and Eastern Europe, with total assets of US$87.3 billion and shareholders' equity of US$8 billion as at year-end 2005. It is majority-owned by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. London Adel Satel Managing Director Financial Institutions Group Moody's Investors Service Ltd. JOURNALISTS: 44 20 7772 5456 SUBSCRIBERS: 44 20 7772 5454 Moscow Andrey Naumenko Vice President - Senior Analyst Financial Institutions Group Moody's Eastern Europe Telephone: +7-495-771-7146 Facsimile: +7-495-937-8290 [2006-07-26]