28th Sep 2007 07:06
Aurora Russia Limited28 September 2007 28 September 2007 Aurora Russia to invest a further £10 million into Kreditmart Aurora Russia Limited ("Aurora Russia"), the AIM-quoted investment vehicleestablished to make equity or equity-related investments in small and mid-sizedprivate companies in Russia, announces that it has invested a further £10million into Kreditmart, to support further growth of the finance company whichdistributes mortgages, equity release loans and other consumer finance products. Kreditmart is wholly owned by Aurora Russia which has now invested a total of£22.5 million in the Company. Kreditmart is a leading multi-brand and multi-product loan financial supermarketin Russia that specialises in mortgages and consumer loans. It was establishedby Aurora Russia with a £12.5 million investment in November 2006 and has shownstrong performance and made significant progress in building its distributionnetwork. Kreditmart opened its first loan shop in Moscow in March 2007 followedby its second loan shop in St. Petersburg in August. Two more branches in Omskand Novosibirsk are scheduled to open in October. Leases have been signed onlocations in Ekaterinburg and Rostov-on-Don, both to open by year-end. Inaddition, Kreditmart has opened an additional 5 sales points in high streetlocations in Moscow and the Moscow Region within the real estate sales officesof Doki and Realmart. Kreditmart offers over 400 loan products from 18 partnerbanks and to date has originated over $10 million in mortgage loans. Kreditmartcurrently employs 80 mortgage professionals. Sir Trevor Chinn, Chairman of Aurora Russia, commented on the investment: "Kreditmart has been steadily exceeding our expectations in terms of growthdynamics; we are committed to further supporting Kreditmart's buoyantdevelopment". James Cook, Chairman of Kreditmart and Director of Aurora Russia, said: "The Russian mortgage market is very vibrant and set for further growth; we aredetermined to leverage this trend to our advantage so as to deliver greatervalue to our shareholders. " Enquiries: Aurora Russia LimitedJames Cook, Moscow +7 495 644 1662John McRoberts, London +44 20 7839 7112 KreditmartNatalia Pushko +7 495 644 1660 Financial DynamicsEd Gascoigne-Pees +44 20 7269 7132Felicity Murdoch +44 20 7269 7243 Notes to Editors: About Aurora Russia Aurora Russia floated on the Alternative Investment Market of the London StockExchange on 24 March 2006. The Company has been established to make equity orequity related investments in small and midsized private Russian companiesfocused on the financial, business and consumer services sectors where theDirectors believe there is potential for growth together with viable exitopportunities within two to four years of making such investments. The Companyintends to provide its investee companies with the necessary capital to continueto expand and develop. The Manager shall provide hands-on operational support todeliver significant step changes in performance and value creation. Aurora Russia targets companies with Enterprise Values of up to approximately£100 million and seeks to secure blocking or controlling stakes and boardrepresentation. The Company intends generally to take equity stakes of greaterthan 20% in each portfolio company. It is anticipated that each equityinvestment will typically be between £5 million and £25 million. For more information please visit www.aurorarussia.com About Kreditmart Kreditmart is the first-ever multi-brand and multi-product loan supermarket inRussia. The company offers its customers a wide selection of loan and insuranceproducts from the leading Russian banks and insurance companies, overall productoffering exceeding 400 programmes. It was set up in 2006 by Aurora RussiaLimited, an AIM listed investment vehicle, with a £12.5 million investment.Kreditmart boasts a team of seasoned professionals with track record of successin mortgage and retail banking. Currently the company focuses on mortgages andhome equity loans, its flagship products. Kreditmart's loan shops operate inMoscow and St.Petersburg with several more scheduled for opening by year end inline with the company's aggressive regional expansion plans. For more information please visit www.kreditmart.ru This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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