«Национальные чемпионы» в структуре российского рынка банковских услуг

We assess the effects from the industrial policy of growing state-controlled national champions on the Russian banking system, its concentration and competitiveness. Some light is shed on comparative financial performance of state-controlled banks versus other market participants. We also show that direct stare ownership is being replaced by indirect ownership and control. The period of observations spreads from 2000 through 1Q 2012. We modify the method of calculating the indicators of market concentration to reflect public ownership of the core market players. As a result of this modification, most market segments cross the threshold of high concentration (HHI ≥ 0.25), whereas household deposits market becomes close to monopoly. Supremacy of public banks enhances their market power and enables collecting rent that boosts profitability. In terms of institutional dynamics, we find a growing similarity between the Russian case and the evolution of the Chinese banking industry.