Peterburgstroy Skanska and Raiffeisenbank offer a loan programme forpurchase of apartments on the primary market in Saint-Petersburg.

At the joint press-conference held October the 10th,Peterburgstroy Skanskaand Raiffeisenbank announced a loan programme forpurchase of apartments on the primary market in Saint Petersburg. Themain purpose of the programme is to offer private clients a possibilityto purchase a flat under construction.

Up to nowPeterburgstroy Skanskahasn’t offered loan programmes for purchase of apartments, and Saint Petersburg branch of Raiffeisenbank has been offering mortgage loans only for secondary market apartments (since 2002 “Northern Capital” Branch has extended mortgage loans for the amount exceeding USD9 mln). For the first time in Saint Petersburg private individuals get an opportunity to receive a mortgage loan for apartment purchase on the primary market in a foreign bank in cooperation with a foreign company.

Michel Perhirin, Chairman of the Managing Board, Raiffeisenbank,remarked that“it’s an increasingly important step for us as a bank, which majors in credit products on the retail market. We are glad indeed that we now offer full range of mortgage products, in particular on the primary market together withPeterburgstroy Skanska. The Bank felt high demand and interest fromclients to primary market just upon the branch opening. The main problemof lending on the primary market is builder’s reliability and the company’s accuracy in documents’ processing at all stages of a project.Peterburgstroy Skanskais the first company to meet all the Bank’s requirements to transparency and careful papers completion.”

Raiffeisenbank launched its mortgage lending programme in 2000. In May2002 Raiffeisenbank was the first bank to announce the breakthrough"floating" rate (LIBOR+8%) in mortgage lending, which was the lowest andone of the best on the market at that moment. In May 2003 Raiffeisenbankreceived a USD 80 mln 10-year facility from IFC (International FinanceCorporation) for mortgage lending programme development. In September2003 Raiffeisenbank announced opening of mortgage-dedicated branches.There are several branches of the kind in Moscow already, which offerthe whole range of services and products for both corporate and privateclients. A mortgage branch is equipped with cash vaults with numerousdeposit safeboxes and space facilities for conducting mortage deals.

PeterburgstroySkanskarealizes residential construction projects and projects oncomplex building-up of areas in St.Petersburg. In 2003 the company sold39 990 sq.m., the trade turnover reached 37,8 million dollars."Themarket develops, requirements of our clients grow, - says VitalyVotolevsky, General Director ofPeterburgstroy Skanska. - To be competitive, modern, successfulconstruction company today, flexibility and reactivity are necessary. Inorder to attract greater number of clients it is necessary to simplifythe scheme of purchase of the real estate as much as possible. Mortgageon the primary market is what is necessary today, it is a significantstep for us and for our clients. I am confident, that cooperation withRaiffeisenbank allows us to achieve all planned results in thisdirection".

Due to mortgage programme terms loan maturity period may vary from 1till 15 years. Minimal loan amount is USD 20000, the rate for apartmentconstructing period is 14% p.a., and after the state registration of theshareholder`s property title and of the apartment pledge, the rate isreduced to the standart level (10% p.a.). Downpayment of at least 30 percent of an apartment value is required. Loan terms don’t require any suretyship. The collateral is provided in the form of pledge of constructed apartment purchased on credit.

The following real estate objects are offered through the presentprogramme - Leninsky Prospekt / Desantnikov St., Poklonnogorskaya St.,”New Scandinavia” residential area. Other buildings under construction are going to be included in the programme in the future.

AsPeterburgstroy Skanska’s analytics predict, new mortgage programme is to increase the volume of sales by 10-15%.

Raiffeisenbank Austria, ZAO is a subsidiary of Raiffeisen InternationalBank-Holding AG (Raiffeisen International). Raiffeisen International,100per cent owned by Raiffeisen Zentralbank Oesterreich AG (RZB-Austria),is the holding company for RZB’s most important subsidiaries in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). RZB-Austria is the central institution of the Austrian Raiffeisen Banking Group, the country''s most powerful banking group.

Raiffeisenbank Austria, ZAO has operated in Russia since 1996 offering awide range of services to companies and private clients. Its regionalnetwork development Raiffeisenbank started in 2000, when a decision toopen additional offices in Moscow and regional Branch inSaint-Petersburg was taken. Raiffeisenbank is ranked 12th in terms ofassets among Top Russian banks and 11th in terms of profitability basedon H1 2004 results (CEA Interfax).

October 2004 Moody''s InterfaxRating Agency assigned Raiffeisenbank Austria, ZAO a long-term creditrating Aaa and short term credit rating Rus -1, being the top rank ofstability according to the national rank.

Skanska is a global construction services group committed to findinginnovative solutions for its clients. Combining global presence withlocal expertise, Skanska offers a broad range of services: from projectdevelopment, to construction and facilities management. The Groupcurrently has 70,000 employees and operations in 11 home markets. Sales2003 totaled USD 18.5 billion.

Skanska East Europe Oy is the leadingWestern construction service company in Russia. Its principle marketsare Moscow and St. Petersburg. Skanska East Europe has obtainedcertification for its quality, environmetal, occupational health andindustrial safety systems.

Peterburgstroy Skanskapresents in St. Petersburg the global experience ofthe world''s leader in construction, Skanska international group. Thecompany fulfils projects of residential houses construction, commercialprojects and comprehensive site development.