According to the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), in 10M Ukrainian bank profits reached USD 733 mln, more than double (USD 356 mln) the amount in 10M05. Total assets in the banking sector also increased by 39% yoy to USD 61.4 bln. Alexander Viktorov: Recent Ukrainian acquisitions by major foreign banks have ushered in better reporting practices at local banks. Raiffeisen Bank Aval (BAVL: BUY), acquired by Raiffeisen, posted 9M06 net income of USD 63 mln against just USD 2 mln in 9M05. Ukrsotsbank (USCB: BUY), near the completion of its acquisition by Italy’s Banca Intesa, raised it 9M06 income 3-fold to USD 44 mln. The recent arrival of OTP Bank to Raiffeisen’s former subsidiary improved the bank’s net income by six times to USD 45 mln.