FX.co ★ Top 7 most popular banks among retail clients in Russia

Sberbank of Russia

According to the survey, more than 87% of respondents choose Sberbank, which makes it an undisputed leader in the banking sector. It also shows that the vast majority of the country's residents use the services of this financial institution. Besides, demand for the retail services provided by Sberbank is much higher in comparison with its competitors.

VTB Bank

VTB Bank takes the second line of the rating. More than 23% of the surveyed people prefer working with this financial enterprise. Curiously enough, this bank operates on the same principle as its main competitor and uses the same development strategy. The only difference lies in the number of services offered to retail customers: VTB Bank is far behind Sberbank in this regard. VTB Bank's current strategy is to actively develop all segments and improve customer experience. What is more, the bank now focuses primarily on the digitization of services.

Tinkoff Bank

Third place in the rating is taken by a private financial organization, Tinkoff Bank, chosen by about 19% of retail users. Tinkoff Bank is the largest digital bank in the country. It works with customers who prefer transit and settlement operations among other services. However, the bank does not limit itself to only these types of services and is currently developing other products to attract more clients. This business model has already enabled the financial institution to gain significant popularity among users and take its own niche along with state-owned banks.

Alfa-Bank

Alfa-Bank occupies fourth place on the list with 16.5% of retail customers. Alfa-Bank's business strategy is a successful combination of digital and physical channels of interaction with customers, which enables the bank to fully understand and meet their needs. The bank offers the whole spectrum of traditional services. To maintain the high quality of these services is the main priority of the bank.

Post Bank

A relatively young financial organization, Post Bank, is in fifth place in the ranking. However, in such a short period of time, it managed to attract many customers. According to the survey, the bank's retail portfolio is just over 10%. The key features of the Post Bank business model are based on a wide retail regional customer service network. Notably, it has far more offices than any other financial institution. Branches of the Bank were established on the premises of the Russian Post and MFC, which enables the bank to attract new clients.

Sovcombank

Sixth place in the rating goes to Sovcombank that is far behind the leaders. Only 6.6% of retail clients are willing to work with this financial institution. The gap became wider when Post Bank appeared which turned out to be its main competitor. However, management quickly responded to the situation and began actively diversifying the previous business model by improving its services and making a shift to the new audience – retired people. The bank also strives to achieve the status of a universal bank. The universal bank offers a wide range of banking and financial services (insurance, development banking, investment banking, commercial banking, and so on) in comparison to traditional banks. Such a strategy allows Sovcombank to remain in demand among different types of clients.

Home Credit & Finance Bank

The seventh place is taken by Home Credit & Finance Bank whose retail portfolio amounts to 10%. Its business model differs significantly from those of the above-mentioned financial enterprises. The bank focuses more on developing certain unique products rather than expanding the client network and choosing only one group of potential clients. In particular, the bank specializes in unsecured personal loans. It is also a leader in POS lending.