OREANDA-NEWS. For several years now Uniastrum has commanded a powerful presence on the Saint Petersburg automobile lending market. Figures for the first half of 2013 show the Bank’s Saint Petersburg operation outstripping all other branches in terms of total distributed auto loans. As of April 1, 2013, the Saint Petersburg office’s auto credit portfolio tipped the scales at Rb 1.05 bn.

Average auto loans issued by the Saint Petersburg branch are currently around Rb 600,000 and Rb 800,000 for new and secondhand car buys, respectively. Some 60% of all loans are for new purchases, while 40% are for secondhand vehicles.

In Q113, Uniastrum auto loan customers in the northern capital shopping for a new vehicle displayed a marked preference for AVTOVAZ brands, which accounted for 9.5% of total auto credits issued. Among secondhand buys, the most popular makes were Toyota and Nissan, which made up 14.2% of secondhand car loans.

In the first quarter, Uniastrum’s Saint Petersburg branch’s total credit portfolio expanded 10% to Rb 2.8 bn as of April 1, 2013. Meantime, its small business lending portfolio grew 6% and consumer credit portfolio 10%.

“Today over half of all new vehicle purchases in Russia are made with borrowed funds,” says Olga Kochak, acting manager of Uniastrum’s Saint Petersburg operation. “As well as obvious price factors, when it comes to choosing the right auto loan, other important considerations are credit decision timeframes, the need for comprehensive car insurance, and the loan application documents required. We do all we can to minimize the time and effort spent by potential borrowers, who can, for instance, apply for a loan via our website and receive a decision the very same day.”