Developed by Uniastrum Bank, one of Russia's top 100 banks, the Unistream money transfer system appeared on the market in 2001. Unistream was originally wholly owned by Uniastrum Bank, and was made a separate bank in 2006.
Uniastrum Bank President Gagik Zakaryan said the deal had to be approved by the Central Bank and the antimonopoly service in the next four or five months. He also said the proceeds from the stake's sale would go toward developing the Unistream network in Russia, and promoting its brand.
"A financial investor will help us increase our presence on the Russian market to 35% from the current 25%, and enable the company to hold an IPO in two to three years," he said.
The Uniastrum president said the bank had no further plans to sell its shareholdings.
Unistream currently operates in more than 85 countries. The volume of its money transfers totaled $750 million in 2005.
