Russia's top lender Sberbank plans to list its American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) on the London Stock Exchange before the bank's privatization scheduled for September or November 2011, Sberbank head German Gref said on Friday.
"We'll do the London listing before the start of privatization," Gref told a news conference. "We are creating a tool to convert our shares into ADRs as part of the privatization."
In March, Russia's National Banking Council permitted the central bank to sell up to 7.6% of its 57.6% stake in Sberbank in 2011-2013 as part of the country's privatization program.
Gref said Sberbank may choose ADR lead managers as early as in May.
The bank has said it would launch a Level 1 ADR program with an offer of up to 25% of its equity by the end of June. Level 1 ADRs have minimal reporting requirements and can only be traded over the counter in the U.S. but are acceptable for secondary trading at the LSE.
Gref, who held meetings with U.S. investors in April, said Sberbank had not yet filed an application to the Federal Financial Markets Service for permission to list abroad.
MOSCOW, May 6 (RIA Novosti)
