Yandex Targets $14.7M Acropol Bank Acquisition For Banking License

Yandex NV YNDX inked an agreement to acquire Acropol Bank for $14.7 million (RUB 1.1 billion).
The acquisition will help Yandex to obtain a banking license to develop Yandex FinTech vertical and launch comprehensive digital finance products and services for users and partners.
Yandex will receive universal banking license, broker, dealer, and depositary licenses under the arrangement. The purchase price includes a $1 million (RUB 75 million) premium to capital.
Over 85% of Acropol's assets are represented by highly liquid instruments, including cash, government bonds, bonds, and deposits of the Central Bank of Russia. Acropol does not have any offline branches.
Yandex held $3.1 billion (RUB 231 billion) in cash and equivalents as of Mar. 31, 2021.
Price action: YNDX shares traded higher by 1.37% at $65.85 in the premarket session on the last check Thursday.