OREANDA-NEWS. National Rating Agency has lowered its national scale credit rating on Commercial Bank "YAR Bank" LLC (Yar-Bank) to 'BBB+'. The outlook for the rating is Stable. NRA's first-time national scale 'BBB' credit rating was assigned to Yar-Bank on Feb. 20, 2008 and raised to 'A-' on Apr. 1, 2009. The latest rating action (affirmation of the bank's 'A-' credit rating with a stable outlook) was on Mar. 2, 2015.

Yar-Bank (initially named Objedinenny Investment Bank) was founded in September 1994. In 2002, it acquired a new shareholder, IFC METROPOL, a leading stock market operator. In 2001, a 50% stake in Yar-Bank passed to the Japan-based SBI Holdings, Inc., a financial group with interests in the asset management, brokerage, investment banking, financial services, real estate and systemic solution developing businesses.

Currently, IFC METROPOL owns a 30.14% stake in the bank and has a 19.86% stake under trust management on behalf of Mikhail Slipenchuk, the owner. In January 2013, the bank was renamed Commercial Bank "YAR Bank" (Limited Liability Company). The bank has a range of licenses allowing it to conduct various banking operations, including full banking license No. 3185 from the Central Bank of Russia. Yar-Bank has been a member bank of the obligatory Deposit Insurance System since August 2005. It holds membership in a number of non-government organisations.