Financial Journal

p. 24-35

Authors: Lyudmila A. Kormishkina, Lyudmila P. Koroleva

The relevance of the study is caused by the fact that since 2013, the proportion of low-income families with two or more children has been growing against the background of reductions in fertility in the Russian Federation. The hypothesis of the study is based on the assumption that with growing excessive inequality and poverty of the population, the maternity capital loses the function of stimulating fertility and becomes the only way for low-income families with children to improve their financial situation. The objective of the study is to substantiate the need to improve the state of redistributive policies through providing the maternity capital for each newborn starting with the first child to reduce large family poverty and the reproduction of poverty in the next generations, and to improve the quality of social resources through maintaining the assigned purpose of the maternity capital (housing, education, and health). The article analyzes the actual expenditure of the State under the Maternity Capital Program for 2007–2017 and the projected expenditure with regard to the introduction of additional measures to support families with children from 2019. An estimate of the necessary expenses for paying the maternity capital for each child from the National Wealth Fund is given. For wealthy families, it has been proposed to use an indirect negative tax. The authors give recommendations for improving the procedure of providing the maternity capital for reducing the reproduction of poverty through guaranteeing minimum start conditions for each child. The implementation of the proposed conceptual approach should be carried out in conjunction with reforming the system of taxation of income and individual property, and changing the provision of the maternity capital and targeted social support for families based on an assessment of their needs.

p. 50-59

Authors: Galina E. Besstremyannaya

The paper contrasts the drivers of mergers and acquisitions in Russia and other countries. Using the results of CEO surveys and surveys of the participants of the M&A markets in Russia and globally, the author compares the most prevalent strategies for company growth and restructuring. The paper points to economic evidence that insufficient development of competition and various issues in corporate finance may be linked to a relatively low predominance of M&A deals in Russia. In particular, this relates to the lack of deals, aimed at acquiring assets of the target. At the same time, the data for the Russian M&A market in 2014–2018 indicates relatively high competition in the information technology, and a growth in the number and the total value of M&A deals in this sector. Additionally, the overall Russian M&A market demonstrates a decrease in the average deal value, and there is a steady fall in the share of the oil and gas sector.

p. 75-87

Authors: Elizaveta V. Anufrieva

A trend toward growing influence of macroeconomics on financial markets has been observed in the last few years. Publications of statistical information relative to macroeconomy can easily affect the prices of commodities and their derivatives on financial markets. As there is little research dedicated to developing countries’ markets, the subject of this study is the Russian financial market. The goal of this analysis is to estimate whether there is an impact of macroeconomic factors on the return of indices traded at Moscow Exchange. The length of the study period is 129 months, and a total of 12 macroeconomic variables (6 of them are related to the Russian economy and 6 to the world economy) are selected to explain the return of 4 indices. The chosen method of this study is principal component analysis. It is implemented for three groups of macroeconomic factors: domestic, foreign, and both factor groups at once. The results suggest that, indeed, there is some influence of macroeconomics on the return of indices traded at Moscow Exchange. More than 10% of all changes in return can be attributed to factors connected to the Russian economy. The explanatory power of all constructed models is also quite high.

p. 102-115

Authors: Nataliya G. Filatova

Development of the long-term investment market is a condition for the formation of the main factors of economic growth and successful implementation of long-term infrastructure projects in modern Russia. The role of bank lending for long-term investment projects is to increase against the background of the consequences of the economic crisis and budget deficit. The article presents bank performance indicators for financing of long-term investment (infrastructure) projects. The author draws a conclusion on the dominant position of banks with state participation in long-term lending. The article considers the factors affecting the tendency of banks to long-term lending. The author also analyzes the practical experience of large domestic banks’ participation in financing of long-term investment projects. Problems and credit risks of long-term investment projects are identified. In conclusion, the author formulates recommendations on the directions and tools to improve the system for assessing the credit risks of investment projects in commercial banks. It is recommended to supplement this system with indicators of the structure of long-term investments, profitability of permanent capital and stability of the loaner’s efficient operation, as well as to ensure additional consideration of risk factors. The author defines the measures to expand the practice of syndicated lending, improving the mechanism providing state guarantees, and developing tools for cooperation between the bank and the loaner as promising areas for the development of long-term loans.