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Russia's Petrocommerce bank puts IPO plans on hold

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Wed Jun 27, 2012 7:41am EDT

* Bank part of IFD Kapital, controlled by Lukoil execs

* Lukoil co-owner Fedun wanted bank's IPO in 2-3 yrs

* Fragile markets meant Sberbank's stake sale also on hold

MOSCOW, June 27 (Reuters) - Russian mid-sized lender Petrocommerce, part of IFD Kapital group controlled by executives at Lukoil, is unlikely to conduct a share offering in the next couple of years due to fragile markets, its executive director said.

Leonid Fedun, chairman of the board at Petrocommerce and the second largest shareholder in Russia's No.2 crude producer Lukoil, told Kommersant daily newspaper last year that the lender may launch an IPO in the next 2-3 years.

But Petrocommerce's Pavel Neumyvakin told journalists on Wednesday that global markets are unfavourable for share offerings at the moment.

"Given current market environment, it is a quite optimistic to talk about an exit in the next couple of years," he said, speaking at the opening of a new office a few kilometres away from the Kremlin.

Global markets are still under pressure following the debt crisis in eurozone and a possible exit by Greece from the currency union which may lead to large losses for European lenders, which have already suffered falling bond prices.

Weak markets meant the planned sale of a 7.6 percent stake by Russia's top lender Sberbank has also been put on hold.

Petrocommerce, ranked among Russia's top-30 lenders by assets, is a strategic partner and major settlement bank of Lukoil but also provides banking services to a wide range of clients, IFD said on its website. (Reporting by Katya Golubkova; editing by Megan Davies and Elaine Hardcastle)

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