VTB Bank PJSC's 50.1% stake in Angola-based Banco VTB Africa SA could be purchased by Rostang ltd., Kommersant reported June 3, citing Angola's Competition Regulatory Authority.

The company is affiliated with Leonid Ranchinsky, who in 2015 served as a management board member at VTB Africa and could be the actual buyer of VTB's stake in the Angolan lender, according to Kommersant. VTB Bank told the newspaper that no final decision has been made regarding the sale of the stake in the Angolan unit.

Banco VTB Africa earned the equivalent of 1.8 billion Russian rubles in 2018, but its development has been hampered by Western sanctions imposed on its Russian parent, and divestment of the stake to the buyer with no formal ties to VTB would help the Angolan bank reduce risks associated with the sanctions, Kommersant reported.

As of June 3, US$1 was equivalent to 65.39 Russian rubles.