MOSCOW, June 19. /ITAR-TASS/. International rating agency Standard & Poor’s expects that geopolitical risks linked with the conflict in Ukraine to hurt Russian banks further, the agency’s Financial Institutions Associate Director Natalia Yalovskaya said in a news conference on Thursday.

“We see that geopolitical risks connected with the situation between Russia and Ukraine. For the banking industry it means that domestic and foreign investors are reconsidering their appetite towards the Russian market,” Yalovskaya said.

The agency also forecasts the growth in the main segments of the banking market to slow down. “We do not expect deposits to grow as fast as last year. We expect growth of the depositary base at no more than 14-15% against a 16% increase in 2013,” Yalovskaya said.

She also added that the agency expects the growth of Russian banks’ credit portfolio to decelerate to 13-17% in 2014-2015 from 19% in 2013, while the household credit portfolio will increase by 15-20% by 2015.