The banking sector of EEA countries: integration
Importance In connection with the further development of Common Free Market Zone, the issue of formation of common financial market, and banking market as its important part, is particularly relevant. This requires the convergence of particular development parameters, placing of appropriate emphasis and priorities in the banking sector development, аs well as interaction of banks with each other, in other words, the assimilation of each particular country's banks in the other countries’ economy. Objectives The article aims to evaluate the current banking sector status of three countries: Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, as well as the possibilities of their future integration. For this purpose, I presented the concept of financial market of the Common Free Market Zone countries, and highlighted the criteria of banking sectors comparison. Methods Based on the method of transition from an abstract notion to the concrete one, I have constructed a logical approach to the analysis of the Common Free Market Zone banking sector competitiveness. Results I consider the financial market concept as such, and also highlight the possibility of defining the banking services market of the Common Free Market Zone countries, and on this basis, I analyze the existing banking systems of each country separately. I also compare the most important indicators of the Russian, Belarusian, Kazakhstan banks competitiveness and their foreign competitors. I analyze such parameters as the organizational component of the banking sector, indicators of banking activities, in particular, the size of charter capital, their foreign banks share, and also the assets value of their share in each country’s GDP. Conclusions and Relevance I came to a conclusion about the existing differences in quantitative parameters, but the analysis of the relative indicators reveals some common trends in the development, that will help these banking systems to integrate in a common banking market in the future. The analysis and findings may be used to compile a Strategy for the financial market development of the Common Free Market Zone countries for the period up to 2020.