VTB Bank

The present deadlock at Bulgaria's Corporate Commercial Bank is a result of the combination of "weak Bulgarian institutions and frankly unbelievable Bulgarian politics", Forbes magazine wrote Saturday.

Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) met on Friday representatives of Vienna-based fund EPIC, Oman's state fund and London-based Gemcorp, the central bank said in a statement.

Bulgaria's central bank is resorting to "absurd" excuses to avoid carrying out its legal duties about Corporate Commercial Bank (Corpbank or KTB), its owner has said.

In a statement on his website, Tsvetan Vasilev also points out the bank is actually serving the interest of a coalition called "PPP", but stops short of revealing what stands for the abbreviation.

The EU is likely to lessen sanctions imposed on Russia in response to the limiting of hostilities in Ukraine, former Bulgarian government official Simeon Djankov argued Thursday.

"If we reach a position of frozen conflict, then we can discuss how we and the Russians can work together," Russian news agency RIA quoted him as saying.

The main shareholders in Bulgaria's Corpbank (KTB) are seeking a meeting in Sofia next week to conduct due diligence on the bank and prepare a plan for its recovery.

EU leaders have introduced a third stage of sanctions against Russia over the country's stance on the Ukraine crisis.

Under the new agreement, trade in Russian bonds and stocks issued by state-owned companies will be banned, and Russian military entities will be prevented from receiving arms and high-tech items.

Advent International and a Bulgarian-Russian consortium headed by businessman Denis Barekov are reportedly the key bidders for nationalized Austrian bank Hypo Alpe Adria.

The bank, which Austria nationalized in 2009 to prevent its collapse, is to sell its Balkan network by mid-2015 at the behest of the EU Commission.

A US private equity fund, a Russian millionaire and a Bulgarian entrepreneur are showing their interest in Hypo Alpe Adria bank's subsidiaries, an Austrian daily argues.

Hypo Alpe Adria is to sell its branches across Southeast Europe, namely in Serbia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, the countries where it is present.

The Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) has announced it is to present the results of an inspection at troubled Corporate Commercial Bank (KTB) by the end of this week.

KTB, Bulgaria's fourth-largest bank, fell under special supervision by BNB upon its own request in mid-June, after rumors about its failure triggered an exhaustion of liquidity.

Russia's VTB bank does not intend to take part in the capital injection planned at the Corporate Commercial Bank (KTB), according to bank sources.

RIA Novosti agency, citing anonymous VTB officials, said Russia's second-largest bank owns a EUR 10 B stake in KTB and does not seek to increase it.