The international ratings agency Standard & Poor’s issued a new report titled “The deterioration of capitalization and profitability hinders the growth of assets of largest Russian banks,” which observes that after a rapid growth in assets in 2010 and 2011, Russian banks are seeing the reduction in the rate of growth and an increase in capital ratios.

According to the report, capital contributions within the banks are at best sporadic, so experts at S&P believe that in order to restore the financial situation, the banks are likely to encounter lower growth rates or consider alternative measures to raising capital, including the possibility of issuing hybrid debt instruments.