OREANDA-NEWS. June 22, 2007. The problem of development of financial and postal-banking services as one of the most significant for the world postal services was brought up at the International Strategic Forum "Pochtovaya Troika – 2007".

Johannes Bun, Trustee Executive of Haypost, national postal operator of Armenia analyzed banking sector all over the world and attracted the participants’ attention to the fact that in many countries only 5% of population have banking account with one bank office accounts for 10-20 thousand people. Due to this fact postal sector plays more important role in particular in rural settlements. Such wide branch network as Russian Post’s one that amounts 42 thousand of post offices let increase the range of services and provide open access to banking services. Haypost as national operator has the most solid branch network amounting about nine hundred units over the country. Therefore new strategy of the company’s development along with intensive development of quality service supposes full development of postal-banking sphere.

The representative of Russian Post’s partners, the leading Russian banks as "Svyaz-Bank", "Home Credit and Finance Bank", "Uralsib" told of great opportunities of banking sector development on the base of post offices.

As to G. Mescheryakov, OJSC "Svyaz-Bank" President cost of opening of a bank office in Russia is about 300—500 thousand USA dollars and this factor along with procedural difficulties holds banks from coming to the regions. Due to this fact enlargement of banking services on the base of post offices is of interest both for the banks themselves and post that gets extra fees. The customers are also interested as they get access to the necessary services.

О. Ganeev, OJSC "Uralsib" Chief Executive Director on Retail Business also noted that implementation of post offices network in realization of banking services increases the number of customers and reduce job strain of bank offices. In addition cooperation of the banks with Russian Post is of great importance for diversification of banking services sale channels.

According to О. Ganeev, one of the most perspective trends of future development of partnership between bank and post is presale of credit and debit cards in post offices and application of infocommunication infrastructure of Russian Post to provide public access to the Internet-banking system.

At the end of the discussion I. Syrtsov, Director General of FSUE Russian Post noted that nowadays the enterprise generates the ideas on financial services improvement and suggests the banks their implementation.

Many national operators make use only of their own opportunities on financial services and establish postal banks. This process is very capital-intensive one. It is a serious task to be performed in Russia, thus Russian Post cooperates with banking society to reach the aim.