Russian lender TCS to spend up to $200 mln in first stage of Asia expansion

MOSCOW, Nov 8 (Reuters) – TCS Group Holding TCSq.L, which runs Russia’s largest online bank, Tinkoff, on Monday said it would spend up to $200 million of its own funds in the first stage of an expansion drive in South East Asia, which includes launching in the Philippines.

Tinkoff said earlier this year it was planning to apply for a digital banking licence in the Philippines with plans for TCS’s subsidiary there to have capital slightly below $40 million. nL1N2PU1LG

Board member Pavel Fedorov, who on Monday was appointed co-chief executive of TCS alongside Oliver Hughes, effective Dec. 1, said TCS was looking at the Philippines and one or two other markets in South East Asia. He did not name other countries.

“We are in dialogue with regulators in three countries,” he said. “Preliminarily, we estimate that it will be up to $200 million of our own funds at the initial stage.”

Fedorov, who has been advising on the company on its international strategy, said the group would spend 20% of capital it raises on international expansion, with the other 80% earmarked for the domestic Russian market, where its presence is also growing.

The Bank of Russia added Tinkoff to the list of systemically important banks last month thanks to its rapidly growing client base, meaning the lender will face stricter central bank requirements but may count on support if it runs into trouble. nL8N2R83LJ

(Reporting by Alexander Marrow and Andrey Ostroukh; Editing by Edmund Blair)

((alexander.marrow@thomsonreuters.com;))