Sberbank has exited the European banking market completely, and has closed the deal to sell its Austrian division, the bank said in a statement, Azernews reports, citing Interfax.

Sberbank said that 100% of Sber Vermogensverwaltungs AG in Abwicklung, formerly Sberbank Europe AG, was bought by an Austrian company controlled by Stefan Zochling.

All the necessary regulatory approvals were obtained for the transaction, Sberbank notes. The bank has not disclosed the amount of the deal.

"The sale of our European subsidiary, Sberbank Europe AG, to a foreign investor is owing to the current situation globally. We are satisfied with the terms of the transaction. Sber is concentrating on developing financial services in Russia, where we have 106 million loyal clients, and in promising friendly countries," Sberbank First Deputy Executive Board Chairman Alexander Vedyakhin was quoted as saying in the statement.

Zochling heads Austria's Remus, which specializes in manufacturing exhaust systems.

The European Central Bank in February 2022 announced the risks of bankruptcy of Sberbank Europe AG and its subsidiaries in Croatia and Slovenia because of liquidity problems, thus the bank decided to close Sberbank Europe and transfer the Croatian and Slovenian banks to local credit institutions.