Russian magnate Lebedev seeks $500 million VEB loan

National Reserve Corporation Chairman Alexander Lebedev talks to Reuters in Moscow September 14, 2009.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian banking and industry magnate Alexander Lebedev is seeking 15 billion roubles ($488 million) in subordinated loans from state-run bank VEB, he told Reuters on Monday.

National Reserve Bank, which is owned by Lebedev [ID:nLF364096], who also owns London's Evening Standard newspaper (DMGOa.L), has already applied for the financing, a spokeswoman for the lender said.

"We hope to receive around $500 million (from VEB) if we inject $150 million by ourselves," Lebedev said at the Reuters Russia Investment Summit.

The state financing should come after Lebedev sells its minority stake in aircraft leasing company Ilyushin Finans to the state and channels the money raised from the sale into National Reserve Bank's capital.

A source close to Ilyushin Finans said the company was valued at around 20 billion roubles, which puts the value of Lebedev's 26 percent stake at about 5 billion roubles.

"Should we receive the loan from VEB we are obliged to channel this financing into the real economy and we are fine with it," Lebedev said.

VEB is a government agent responsible for providing subordinated loans to Russian banks in order to force them to lend to the real economy sector suffering with a lack of affordable long-term financing.

($1=30.72 roubles)

(Reporting by Dmitry Sergeyev, Oksana Kobzeva and Gleb Stolyarov; writing by Dmitry Sergeyev; editing by Greg Mahlich)