Life extension, asset sales, AI profitability — key statements from Sber CEO

Life extension, asset sales, AI profitability: key statements from Sber CEO According to German Gref, the bank’s key objective for 2027-2029 is to position itself as a driver of the new economySber CEO German Gref© Sergey Bulkin/TASSMOSCOW, November 12. /TASS/. Sberbank is financing advanced life extension methods and sees great potential in this field, Sber CEO German Gref said at the bank’s Investor Day. He noted that Sber’s investments in artificial intelligence are fully paying off, but its investments in generative AI are not. In addition, Sberbank expects to sell all its unneeded warehouses to marketplaces by the end of the year. TASS has compiled the key statements made by Sber’s CEO. Sber’s priorities Sber’s key objective for 2027-2029 is to position itself as a driver of the new economy: "Sber has historically strong positions: the trust of millions, financial capital, and risk management expertise accumulated over decades. And this gives us the right and the responsibility to aspire to the role of a driver of the new economy, and this is our key objective for the next three years." There are three priorities on which the bank’s future will be built: "The first is an AI assistant - your personal navigator that will help you solve everyday tasks based on your interests and long-term aspirations. The assistant should take over 90% of organization and execution. You simply say what you want to achieve, and that’s it. The second is an environment for trusted interaction between agents. The third is a system of the best products and services." Artificial intelligence Sber’s investments in artificial intelligence are fully paying off, but its investments in generative AI are not: "Unfortunately, generative artificial intelligence is not yet paying off for us or for any company in the world involved in developing it. But what saves us is precisely the fact that we started implementing artificial intelligence a very long time ago, and overall, our investments in artificial intelligence are fully paying off." Sberbank has earned about 1.5 trillion rubles ($18.1 bln) from artificial intelligence technologies over the past three years: "Over the past three years, we have earned approximately one and a half trillion rubles from the use of artificial intelligence. And the balance is, of course, positive, and it is significant." Life extension methods Sberbank is financing advanced life extension methods and sees great potential in this field: "We are investing in relevant research into longevity and the most advanced methods in this area. And we are confident that breakthroughs are already taking place in this market, and they will become evident in the coming years. Life extension, extending healthy living, everything related to anti-aging and beauty technologies - I think all of this has a very promising future." Sber’s dividend policy Sber’s return on equity over the three-year period stood at 22%, while its capital adequacy ratio exceeded regulatory requirements: "Despite the external chaos, we have met all our financial targets. Return on equity is above 22%, and this is the pulse of a healthy and powerful organism. The capital adequacy ratio is above regulatory requirements; dividends amount to 50% of net profit annually." Over three years, Sber paid shareholders 2.4 trillion rubles ($28.9 bln): "This is as much as Sber paid out over the previous 20 years." Sberbank’s dividend policy for 2027-2029 provides for maintaining payouts at 50% of net profit under IFRS, while an annual return on equity of at least 21% and a capital adequacy ratio of at least 13.3% are key targets of the bank’s three-year strategy: "What does this strategy mean for those who have invested their capital in us? We are not choosing between the future and the present. We intend to combine high profitability with aggressive investment in the future, maintain leadership in existing markets, and create new sources of income at an explosive pace. Return on equity will be at least 21% annually, and capital adequacy will be at least 13.3%. Our dividend policy remains unchanged - 50% of net profit under IFRS." Sberbank intends to do everything possible to ensure that dividend payouts do not fall below the current level of 50% of net profit: "It is a great honor for us to pay dividends to the fullest extent possible. We will do everything to ensure that the volume of dividend payments does not decline and that we do not, so to speak, lose the affection of our shareholders, especially retail shareholders, for the company under any circumstances." Exit from unprofitable businesses Sber will continue making targeted acquisitions and gradually exit business areas that do not generate profits in the medium term: "We had a huge number of warehouses that were generating losses for us, but this situation with the warehouses actually helped us in this case." Sberbank expects to sell all its unneeded warehouses to marketplaces by the end of the year: "In fact, I think that by the end of this year, we will reach the point where we have transferred and sold 100% of the warehouses we no longer need to marketplaces. And this was a major source of our negative financial results." Data centers Sberbank plans to accelerate the construction of data centers and is considering acquiring other players in this market: "This is necessary for our business and for our clients’ businesses. And, of course, we want to become the number one provider of AI services to our clients. This is not so much about acquisitions as it is about accelerating the development and construction of data centers, perhaps with the acquisition of some market players." 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