ST. PETERSBURG, June 9. /TASS/. Sberbank still intends to sell its Ukrainian business and continues to look for an opportunity to do so, First Deputy CEO of the bank Lev Khasis told TASS in an interview on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"We have been trying for many years to find an opportunity to leave the Ukrainian market, and at the same time we fully comply with all the requirements of Ukrainian regulators. Sberbank of Ukraine is perhaps one of the most stable banks existing in Ukraine overall. However, so far we have been unable to obtain regulatory permits to exit the market, and if we manage to do this all of a sudden, we would use this opportunity with pleasure. We want to leave the market by selling our business, and not find ourselves in a situation, where they expropriate it from us in a gangster-like way. We have significant funds there - this is our shareholders’ money," Khasis said.

Ukrainian Sberbank has been under sanctions since March 2017, when Kiev banned it from any financial transactions in favor of those persons associated with it - in particular, parent entities. Since then, Sberbank has been trying to sell its business in that country, but the National Bank of Ukraine refuses to agree on a deal.