Today in Russian Business

Aluminium producer Rusal said it will raise its stake in Norilsk Nickel from 25% to 27%. The board of KM-Invest, a Russian firm that manages some assets of tycoons Mikhail Prokhorov and Vladimir Potanin, has voted to sell more of its assets. A review of the year’s Russian metal market deals can be found here. The board of Russia’s Bank of Development will purchase a 5% stake in European aerospace company EADS from VTB Bank for about $1.43 billion. Russia’s state-owned banks are rapidly increasing their share of the market, with the top ten banks accounting for 46% of total banking assets in 2007. A new survey of German investors shows that German companies continue to see Russia as a business opportunity “in spite of political tensions between the two countries.” Alliance Group and billionaire Polymetal owner Suleiman Kerimov plan to bid for a stake worth $622 million in Polyus Gold. The government will keep its $151 billion stabilization fund entirely in sovereign bonds next year and will not invest a $19 billion subfund in corporate debt or stock. The Association of Russian Banks has asked Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov to postpone the introduction of amendments to the law on fighting money-laundering until it is clear on how to implement them.