On April 19, the President of the Republic of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, met with the chairman of the Board of Directors of the OJSC Alfa-Bank (Russian Federation), Mikhail Fridman.

The President of Belarus thanked Mikhail Fridman for the work of the OJSC Alfa-Bank in Belarus, specifically, for the investments channeled into the country’s economy through Belarusbank Savings Bank.

“To have the OJSC Alfa-Bank represented in our country is beneficial for us. We are aware of the social programmes of your bank. I think you will be participating in social projects in our country too,” the Head of State said. “One ought to help the people where one works.”

At the same time the President accentuated that “we do not intend to raise the bar of requirements.” “We have sufficient experience related to this aid. There are many Russian companies working in Belarus, and we are not going to strip them of their profits. We do not need any extras. What is important is that the nation must be sure that those who come here do it not only for the sake of increasing their wealth, but also to care for the people living in this country,” the Head of State added.

Alexander Lukashenko pointed out that “this is already the second meeting related to the drawing of OJSC Alfa-Bank investments into the country’s economy and the acquisition of the control packet of shares of the CJSC Mezhtorgbank.” During the previous meeting the parties had actually agreed on the main terms of such cooperation, the coordination of positions is still needed only for some separate issues.

According to Mikhail Fridman, on the whole, the OJSC Alfa-Bank counts on its long-term and stable presence in Belarus.

Alfa-Bank is one of the Russia’s largest privately owned banks. As of January 1^st, 2007, total assets of Alfa-Bank and its subsidiaries equaled to US$ 12.3 billion, total equity was at US$ 1,5 billion. Net profit equaled to US$ 186.1 million in 2006.