Sense Bank

Sense Bank is one of the largest Ukrainian commercial banks; it is a member of the international private investment holding company — ABH Holdings S.A. (ABHH), headquartered in Luxembourg.[2][3] On December 1, 2022, the name of "Alfa-Bank Ukraine" has changed to Sense Bank.[4] According to the National Bank of Ukraine, the bank was founded in 1993 and as of 2021, it is on the list of top 10 largest financial institutions in the country by asset size.[5] The bank is a member of the Deposit Guarantee Fund [6] and it is identified as a systemically important bank in Ukraine.[7]

Sense Bank
TypeJoint stock company
IndustryCommercial bank
Financial services
FoundedMarch 24, 1993 (1993-03-24). Licence: No. 61 of 01 December 2022, Parent company: ABH Holdings S.A., Luxembourg. Auditor: RSM International
Headquarters
Kyiv
,
Ukraine
Number of locations
210 branches and 706 ATMs, served 1.5 million natural and legal persons. Head office: 100 Velyka Vasylkivska St., Kyiv
Key people
Roman Shpek — Chairman of the Supervisory Board,
Alla Komisarenko — Chairperson of the Management Board,
Simeon Djankov — authorized person of the substantial interest holder
ProductsConsumer banking
Corporate banking
Investment banking
RevenueEquity: UAH 2.623 bln (31 December 2015) (31.12.2015)[1]
Increase UAH 527 million (1 April 2019)
Total assetsIncrease UAH 96.8 bln (1 March 2021)
OwnerMikhail Fridman, Pyotr Aven, Andrey Kosogov
Number of employees
5000 persons (18 July 2022)
Websitesensebank.com.ua

The bank is owned by Russian businessmen Mikhail Fridman⁣ (32.86%), Petr Aven⁣ (12.4%) and Andrey Kosogov. Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine the bank was rebranding to its current name Sense Bank. Directly following the invasion millions of hryvnias of Alfa-Bank Ukraine's budget were allocated to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and territorial defense units.[8][9] In April 2023 the National Bank of Ukraine declared the holding companies Fridman, Aven and Kosogov used to control the bank, ABH Financial Limited and ABH Ukraine Limited, "dubious" and instated a temporary ban on the use of its voting rights (100% of the voting rights of Sense Bank).[10]

History
Sense Bank in Kyiv (2023)
Sense Bank

Alfa-Bank Ukraine was founded on 24 March 1993 as a limited liability company named Consumer-Assisting Commercial Bank Vito, having its head office in Kyiv. Subsequent names: Kyivinvestbank (since 25 March 1996); JSCB Kyivinvestbank (since 15 April 1998); CJSC Alfa-Bank (since 26 January 2001); CJSC ALFA-BANK (since 2 October 2006); PJSC ALFA-BANK (since 21 July 2009); PJSC ALFA-BANK (since 15 February 2013); JSC ALFA-BANK (since 6 July 2018).[11]

In 2001, the bank became a member of the SWIFT system and an associated member of the VISA International. In the same year, the bank became a member of PFTS Stock Exchange and has been a member of its Council since August 2004.

On 26 December 2006, Alfa-Bank (Russia) sold its share in Alfa-Bank (Ukraine) to ABH Ukraine Limited. As of 1 January 2021, ABH Holdings S.A. owned 57.6% of the bank's shares, and ABH Ukraine Limited owned 42.4% of the bank's shares. However, beneficial shareholders of Alfa-Bank Ukraine have remained unchanged.

By 2006, the bank had transformed into a full-service bank with a strong presence in the corporate banking sector. The bank is simultaneously stepping up its presence in the retail banking sector.

In 2009, Closed Joint-Stock Company Alfa-Bank (CJSC Alfa-Bank) was renamed to Public Joint-Stock Company Alfa-Bank (PJSC Alfa-Bank), and in 2018, it was renamed to Private Joint-Stock Company Alfa-Bank.

From 2016 until October 2019, ABHH Group consolidated its assets in Ukraine (Alfa-Bank and Ukrsotsbank), which resulted in the establishment of one of the largest private banks in Ukraine.[12]

On 17 March 2020, due to the increased demand for foreign cash and limited supply of currency notes in Ukraine, Alfa-Bank temporarily suspended the sale of foreign cash in 45 branches of the bank during the day.[13]

On November 26, 2020, Alfa-Bank Ukraine launched digital banking app—Sense SuperApp (mobile application), where natural persons and sole-proprietors can get services at the same time. Over a year, more than 1.4 million of the bank's customers became app users.

In early 2021, Sense SuperApp digital banking app made it possible to go through quick identification via the Diia app and apply for debit or credit card.[14]

In March 2021, Alfa-Bank Ukraine and Ukrainian telecom operator Kyivstar started strategic cooperation to provide convergent banking and telecommunications services in one place. The financial institution and the telecom operator have merged bank and mobile accounts in Sense SuperApp digital banking app.[15]

In August 2021, Caméléon digital card became available in Sense SuperApp: a card with endless grace period and 0.01% on purchases at the expense of credit means. From October 2021, one can get Caméléon debit and credit card in Kyivstar brand stores.

In December 2021, Alfa-Bank Ukraine began paying UAH 1,000 to those who have passed the full course of vaccination, to eSupport card which can be applied for in Sense SuperApp digital banking app.[16]

At the end of 2021, Alfa-Bank initiated the access of shares to circulation on the Ukrainian market and provided customers with a trading tool in Sense SuperApp digital banking app.[17] During the pilot phase that lasted from December 28, 2021, to January 10, 2022, the trading volume amounted to over UAH 18 million.[18]

According to the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), on December 1, 2021,[11] the bank's assets amounted to UAH 111 billion. According to the bank, at the end of 2021, the bank had 201 branches and 686 ATMs (198 of them with NFC). As of July 18, 2022, the bank served over 3 million individual customers, 55,000 companies, and 82,000 sole proprietors; a number of bank employees was almost 5,000.[19]

As of April 21, 2022, the ultimate beneficial owners, who have a substantial ownership interest in Alfa-Bank Ukraine through the holding companies—a 57.6% stake through ABH Holdings S.A. (Luxembourg) and a 42.4% stake through ABH Ukraine Limited (Cyprus), were as follows:[20][21]

  • native of (the Ukrainian city) Lviv, Russian–Israeli businessman Mikhail Fridman⁣ — 32.86%;
  • citizen of Russia and the Republic of Latvia Petr Aven⁣ — 12.4%;
  • Russian businessman Andrey Kosogov — 40.96%.

On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.[22] Following the invasion millions of hryvnias of Alfa-Bank Ukraine's budget were allocated to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and territorial defense units.[8][9] Furthermore Alfa-Bank Ukraine's employees and individual clients jointly raised more million in charitable donations for the Armed Forces and territorial defense units.[23]

Rebranding

On April 21, 2022, the National Bank of Ukraine approved the appointment of Simeon Djankov as the authorized person for one year or until a change in ownership by either sale or transfer of shares to the state property fund.[24][25] The management board of Bank has resolved to reject the Alfa-Bank brand and continue to operate under a new brand. “A few days after the outbreak of war, the Board decided to dissociate itself from the Alfa-Bank brand. The bank does not want to bear any relation to the aggressor country, even at the level of associations or connections that link to the brand operating in Russia.”[26] He has written widely on the economic impact of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. This invasion has resulted in significant loss of human capital,[27] destruction of agricultural trading infrastructure,[28] huge damages to productive capacity,[29] including through the loss of electricity,[30] and a reduction in private consumption of more than a third relative to pre-war levels.[31] The all-out aggression requires an all-out response by the European Union to win the war.[32]

Also under Dyankov's initiative, Sense Bank has become a part of the joint banking network POWER BANKING. It means that 74 critical branches of Sense Bank will operate even during long-term blackouts caused by Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure. All of them are equipped with alternative energy sources and backup communication channels.[33]

On July 11, 2022, it was officially announced that Alfa-Bank will be rebranding to Sense Bank. The bank rebranded to Sense, their mobile bank of the same name, created in 2020.[34]

Share Transfer Offer

In October 2022, one of the main co-owners of the bank, Mikhail Fridman, on behalf of the shareholders, sent a letter to the chairman of the National Bank of Ukraine with a proposal to transfer the shares to the state. As an alternative measure, an additional capitalization of the bank by $1 billion was proposed.[35]

Aven, Kosogov and Fridman controlled the bank through ABH Financial Limited (owns 57.6006% of Sense Bank) and its daughter ABH Ukraine Limited (42.3994%).[10] ABH Financial Limited was also used to control Amsterdam Trade Bank.[10] Because Amsterdam Trade Bank went bankrupt in April 2022 the National Bank of Ukraine declared the ABH Financial Limited status "dubious" and instated a temporary ban on the use of its and ABH Ukraine Limited voting rights.[10]

Owners

Information about the ultimate key shareholders in the bank's ownership structure as of 1 January 2021:[36]

No. / Shareholder / Percent of shares

  1. Andrey Nikolaevich Kosogov (a citizen of Russia) — 40.96%
  2. Mikhail Maratovich Fridman (born in Lviv, a citizen of Russia and Israel, residing in the United Kingdom) — 32.86%
  3. Petr Olegovich Aven (a citizen of Russia and Latvia) — 12.40%
  4. UniCredit S.p.A. — 9.9%
  5. The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research — 3.87%

Management board

As of March 15, 2023:[37][38]

  • Alla Komisarenko — Chairperson of the Management Board
  • Andrii Hrytseniuk — Executive Director for Information Technology and Retail Business, Member of the Management Board
  • Oleksii Savenko — Member of the Management Board, Chief Accountant, Head of Accounting & Reporting Unit
  • Kateryna Polovko —   Member of the Management Board, Operations Unit
  • Polina Kharchenko — Member of the Management Board, Compliance and Financial Monitoring Director
  • Serhii Chornoivan — Member of the Management Board for Non-Performing Assets

Awards

In March 2021, Alfa-Bank was named the best bank in Ukraine by Global Finance.[39][40]

In this same year, the international magazine Global Finance recognized Alfa-Bank as the winner in The Best Consumer Digital Bank in Ukraine category - for the best digital banking of the country at the annual World's Best Consumer Digital Banks Awards in Central & Eastern Europe 2021.[41]

Global Finance also named Alfa-Bank as the best SME-bank in Ukraine at the SME Bank Awards 2022[42] and A-Club private banking division received the Best Private Bank Award for the second year in a row.[43]

On November 26, 2021, to celebrate the first anniversary of Sense SuperApp digital banking app, Alfa-Bank Ukraine in partnership with Mastercard held the world's first online concert of the Ukrainian artist MONATIK via the mobile app. This concert entered the Ukrainian book of records.[44]

In 2022, Sense Bank has been awarded Bank of the Year 2022 for Ukraine by The Banker, a leading international publication.[45][46]

Andrii Hrytseniuk, Chief Information Officer at Alfa-Bank Ukraine, was named as the best CIO in the world by The Banker[47]

Sense Bank received The Banker's Global Innovation in Digital Banking Award[48]

Sense Bank was recognized as the best Ukrainian digital bank according to Ukrainian Fintech Awards[49]

Social initiatives

In 2011–2017, Alfa-Bank was a partner of the first international jazz festival in Lviv, Alfa Jazz Fest. In 7 years, the bank's initiative allowed for establishing an international music festival that has become an independent cultural event in Ukraine and, since 2018, after the rebranding, has been held under the name “Leopolis Jazz Fest”.

The bank was a Special Partner of the Ukrainian Lunch within the framework of the World Economic Forum in Davos as well as a Partner of the 9th Yalta Annual Meeting (YES) entitled “Ukraine and the World: Addressing Tomorrow’s Challenges Together”[50] and the 10th Yalta Annual Meeting “Changing Ukraine in a Changing World: Factors of Success”.[51] In 2019, Alfa-Bank (Ukraine) has become a member of the UN Global Compact Network in Ukraine.[52]

Since the imposition of martial law following the February 24, 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine[22] 104 million hryvnias of Alfa-Bank Ukraine's budget have been allocated to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and territorial defense units.[8] In particular, 10 million[9] hryvnias in targeted funding were delivered to the Armed Forces of Ukraine during the first days of hostilities. Moreover, Alfa-Bank Ukraine has supplied military accoutrements, food, generators, tactical gear, medicines, one armored vehicle, thermal imaging cameras, etc. to TDUs and the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

During only 13 days of the war, Alfa-Bank Ukraine's employees and individual clients jointly raised over UAH 115 million in charitable donations for Armed Forces and territorial defense units through Sense SupperApp mobile app.[23]

The bank made it possible to make donations to the Armed Forces of Ukraine via Sense SupperApp digital banking app. The easy-to-use options, “Support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine” and “Support for Victims”, let you pay with one click; financial contributions may be also made from the єPіdtrimka (eSupport) card.[9]

References
  1. "Annual report for 2015" (PDF) (in Ukrainian). alfabank.ua. Retrieved 2016-09-26.
  2. "Банк АТ 'АЛЬФА-БАНК'". Національний банк України (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  3. "Відомості про остаточних ключових учасників у структурі власності банку станом на 01 січня 2019 року" (PDF) (in Ukrainian).
  4. ""Альфа-Банк" з 1 грудня офіційно стане "Сенс Банком"".
  5. forinsurer.com. "Активы - Рейтинг банков Украины НБУ за 9 месяцев 2020 г. - ТОП 100 – Фориншурер". forinsurer.com (in Russian). Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  6. "Банки - учасники Фонду гарантування вкладів фізичних осіб". www.fg.gov.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  7. "Національний банк оновив перелік системно важливих банків". Національний банк України (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  8. "Альфа-Банк Україна надав понад 104 млн грн на допомогу ЗСУ". delo.ua (in Ukrainian). 2022-11-01.
  9. "Альфа-Банк виділив 60 млн гривень на допомогу українським захисникам — Delo.ua". delo.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  10. "The National Bank recognized the dubious reputation of non-sanctioned shareholders of Sense Bank and introduced a ban on voting rights for 100% of its shares". Interfax-Ukraine (in Ukrainian). 28 March 2023. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
    "The National Bank recognized the business reputation of the shareholders of "Sens Bank" as dubious". Economical Truth (in Ukrainian). 28 March 2023. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
  11. "Банк АТ 'АЛЬФА-БАНК'" (in Ukrainian). НБУ.
  12. ""Укрсоцбанк" объединят с "Альфа-Банком"". www.unian.net (in Russian). Retrieved 2019-08-05.
  13. «Альфа банк» припинив продаж і видачу готівкових доларів, Європейська правда, 17 березня 2020
  14. "Новини компаній: Альфа-Банк почав відкривати картки через застосунок Дія". biz.nv.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  15. Yevgeniy.Kasyan_3771 (2021-09-07). "Київстар та Альфа-Банк Україна оголошують про початок стратегічної співпраці". kyivstar.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  16. Володимир, Автор: Хенгістов (2021-12-09). "Альфа-Банк та monobank запускають картки для отримання «1000 гривень за вакцинацію»". Хмарочос (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  17. ""Альфа-Банк" відкрив можливість інвестування в акції міжнародних компаній". Mind.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  18. ""Пілот завершено". Альфа-банк запустив торгівлю акціями для всіх користувачів". biz.nv.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  19. Финансовий клуб (18 July 2022). "Зі зміною назви Альфа-Банк змінює сервісну модель обслуговування клієнтів".
  20. "Люксембургская ABH Holdings стала владельцем 99,9% акций Укрсоцбанка". 2021-04-13. Archived from the original on 2021-04-13. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  21. Відомості про власників істотної участі в банку. (PDF) https://old.alfabank.ua/storage/files/vidomosti-pro-vlasnikiv-istotnoyi-uchasti-ua.pdf. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  22. "Russia launches massive invasion of Ukraine — live updates". Deutsche Welle. 24 February 2022.
  23. "Альфа-Банк Украина собрал более 115 млн грн благотворительной помощи для ВСУ через Sense SupperApp". minfin.com.ua (in Russian). Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  24. "NBU Appoints Trustee and Recognizes Impeccable Business Reputation Of Shareholders Of Sense Bank". ukranews.ua (in Ukrainian). 2022-03-28. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  25. Шевчук, Мария (2022-04-21). "Дянков по согласованию НБУ станет доверенным лицом и получит право голоса по акциям подсанкционных акционеров Альфа-Банка Украина". OBOZREVATEL NEWS (in Russian). Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  26. "На порядку денному Альфа-Банку Україна питання нового імені та докапіталізації на $1 млрд – довірена особа". Інтерфакс-Україна (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  27. The Loss of Human Capital in Ukraine, Noam Angrist, Simeon Djankov, Pinelopi Goldberg and Harry Patrinos, CEPR.ORG, 27 April 2022.
  28. Oleksii Blinov and Simeon Djankov, Restarting Ukraine's Agricultural Exports, CEPR.ORG, 10 June 2022.
  29. Oleksii Blinov and Simeon Djankov, Assessing the Damages to Productive Capacity in Ukraine, CEPR, 21 September 2022.
  30. Oleksii Blinov and Simeon Djankov, The Economic Toll of Attacks on Ukraine's Power Grid, CEPR, 22 December 2022.
    - Oleksii Blinov and Simeon Djankov, Russia's Air Attacks Cut The Ukrainian Economy by 12% in November, Forbes, 12 January 2023 (in Ukrainian).
  31. Oleksii Blinov and Simeon Djankov, Measuring Private Consumption During the War, CEPR, 24 July 2022.
  32. Oleksii Blinov and Simeon Djankov, The all-out aggression requires an all-out response, CEPR, 18 February 2023.
  33. Шевчук, Мария (2022-12-26). "Работают без света и связи: 74 отделения Sense Bank вошли в объединенную сеть Power Banking". OBOZREVATEL NEWS (in Russian). Retrieved 2023-01-16.
  34. "Через місяць один з українських банків змінить назву". www.unian.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-10-03.
  35. "Alfa-Bank Ukraine shareholders ready to capitalize it by $1 bln or donate it to state - Fridman". interfax.com.ua. 2022-10-14.
  36. "Відомості про остаточних ключових учасників у структурі власності банку станом на 01 січня 2021 року" (PDF) (in Ukrainian). Національний банк України. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  37. https://sensebank.com.ua/pravlinna-ta-menedzeri. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  38. "Власники та бенеціфіціари компанії АТ «СЕНС БАНК»". opendatabot.ua (in Ukrainian). 2023-02-09. Retrieved 2023-02-09.
  39. "Global Finance Announces its 28th Annual Best Bank Awards and Names the Best Banks in Central & Eastern Europe 2021". Global Finance Magazine. 2021-03-18.
  40. Марія Шевчук (2021-03-23). "Global Finance визнало Альфа-Банк найкращим банком в Україні" (in Ukrainian). Obozrevatel.
  41. "Міжнародне видання Global Finance визнало Альфа-Банк ..." НАБУ (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  42. "Global Finance Magazine - PRESS RELEASE: Best SME Bank Awards 2022". Global Finance Magazine. Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  43. "Приватний банкінг A-Club став найкращим в Україні за ..." НАБУ (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  44. Шевчук, Марія (2021-11-30). "Світовий рекорд: Альфа-Банк Україна провів перший у світі онлайн-концерт у цифровому банку". Obozrevatel (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  45. "Структура власності компанії АТ «СЕНС БАНК»". opendatabot.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2022-12-20.
  46. "The Banker's Bank of the Year Awards 2022". www.thebanker.com. Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  47. "IT-директор Альфа-Банка Украина Андрей Гриценюк - лучший CIO мира в 2022 - the Banker".
  48. "Альфа-Банк Україна отримав міжнародну нагороду від the Banker за інновації у цифровому банкінгу".
  49. "Sense SuperApp визнано найкращим українським цифровим банком у 2021 році".
  50. "9-а щорічна зустріч у Ялті, 2012 рік: Партнери". Archived from the original on 2014-04-19. Retrieved 2014-04-17.
  51. Прес-реліз Ялтинської зустрічі 2013
  52. "Альфа-Банк Україна став членом Глобального договору ООН в Україні".
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.