OREANDA-NEWS. Herman Gref, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board of Sberbank, spoke at the 7th Congress of Leaders of OPORA ROSSII, the nationwide non-governmental organisation of small and medium-sized business. The head of Sberbank spoke during the plenary discussion "Development Strategy for Small and Medium-sized Business."

"By developing small business in Russia we can guarantee that our economy will grow," said Herman Gref. "Small business needs to expand significantly in order for growth to materialise. At the same time, it is vital that small business becomes more competitive. Small business is capable of diversifying the Russian economy, including by developing the innovation industry and start-up industry."

Sberbank currently has 1.16 million active small business clients. Since the start of 2015, Sberbank has provided small and medium-sized businesses with RUB 774.8 bln worth of loans (small businesses have received RUB 186.3 bln). The bank's loan portfolio for small and medium-sized business is around RUB 1.36 tln.

The congress is taking place in Sberbank's headquarters on November 23-24. Around 200 people from various Russian regions are attending.

The event also included an exhibition of digital products for corporate clients: the new version of Sberbank Business Online, the business tablet, and the Sberbank Business Online mobile application. In addition it was possible for clients to test out the mobile application, "My Team" service package, as well as the products and services offered by Sberbank subsidiary "Business Environment".