Regional banks: new rules of the game

The paper presents the characteristics of regional small- and medium-sized banks in the current economic situation. The impact of external and internal economic factors on the performance of this group of banks is considered as well. The research trends and findings proved the need to improve the legislation in terms of regional banks regulation. The author discusses the approach of the Bank of Russia to grant the credit organizations the status of “regional banks”, involving compliance with a number of requirements when implementing their activities. The specific nature of this approach is examined. Besides, the existing and potential problems of the Russian banking system are reviewed. The author provides recommendations how to define the system-relevant banks in the institutional banking structure in different regions of the Russian Federation.