FUIB & Dongorbank complete merger

First Ukrainian International Bank and Dongorbank, both owned by Ukraine’s richest man Rinat Akhmetov, completed their merger, Interfax reported yesterday. The combined bank operates under the FUIB brand. Svetlana Rekrut: Synergies from the merger might be limited due to the disparate business strategies of the two banks: FUIB is a public retail bank while Dongorbank is oriented toward operations within Akhmetov’s SCM group. Nevertheless, the merger puts FUIB among Ukraine’s top-10 largest banks by assets, and should improve operating performance, streamline operating processes and product lines, increase bank capital and widen business opportunities in lending to large businesses.