BTA Bank
BTA Bank () (BTA Bank Joint-Stock Company in full) is a Kazakhstan bank with headquarters in Almaty. it was the third largest lender by assets. In 2009, BTA Bank was subject of one of the world's biggest financial frauds totaling US$5 billion. History First stage On 15 October 1925 Presidium of Central Council of the Kazakhstan national economy ruled to open the department of Promyshlennyi (Industrial) Bank (Prombank). During the Soviet period the bank underwent several reorganizations. In 1991 it was re-established as Turanbank, the Kazakh Republican Bank of the State commercial industrial and construction bank. In 1991 Turanbank was established on this basis. In 1992 the bank was renamed to Alem Bank Kazakhstan, the Bank of foreign economic activities of the Republic of Kazakhstan. On 15 January 1997, Bank TuranAlem was privatised and set up a Closed Joint-Stock Company in accordance with the Decree of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On reorganization of the Kazakh joint-stock bank Turanbank and joint-stock bank AlemBank Kazakhstan". On 1 October 1998 Bank TuranAlem CJSC was renamed to Bank TuranAlem OJSC and then to Bank TuranAlem JSC. In spring 2008 the bank underwent rebranding, which resulted in the change of the name, logo and corporate identity of the bank. After this the BTA Bank JSC name was no longer perceived as an acronym. Events between 2009–2012 Fraud & Embezzlement It was revealed in 2009 that the bank was defrauded of up to $6 billion of cash in one of the world's biggest cases of financial fraud. The banks former chairman Mukhtar Ablyazov is alleged to have perpetrated the fraud. Ablyazov has said that under his leadership BTA did conceal assets to protect them from being seized by the government. Private investigators have been used in an attempt to recover some of the funds, who in October 2010 found documents and disc drives relating to the bank in a self-storage facility in north London. A found documents and disc drives relating to the bank in a self-storage facility in north Londonthrough which BTA had transacted. Bankruptcy BTA Bank sought bankruptcy protection in 2010 from U.S. creditors while it restructured $11.6 billion of debt. The debts were incurred by alleged mismanagement and embezzlement by former BTA Bank Chairman Muktar Ablyazov. Restructuring In February 2009 Samruk-Kazyna Fund purchased 75.1% of BTA Bank's shares as part of contingency measures of the government of the Republic of Kazakhstan. As the result the bank gained additional capital of KZT 251.3 bln. During 2009–2010 BTA Bank has completed restructuring of its certain financial indebtedness. As the result the bank's indebtedness decreased from $16.65 bln. to $4.2 bln, Samruk-Kazyna Fund's share in the capital increased up to 81.48%, both domestic and foreign creditors became the Bank's shareholders holding 18.5% in the capital. Due to aggravation of the Bank's financial status during 2011, relative shortage of liquid assets and negative financial performance, in 2012 BTA Bank started the second restructuring which resulted in cancellation of the Bank's certain financial indebtedness. In