Fitch Ratings, an international rating agency, has given SISTEMA JSFC international Foreign and Local currency senior unsecured ‘B’ ratings. The outlook for both Foreign and Local currency ratings is ‘Stable’. The rating decision was based on the balanced assessment of various business operations in which SISTEMA JSFC has been involved. Fitch’s analysts point out that SISTEMA JSFC’ controlling interest in the company Moscow City Telephone Network (MGTS) and a stake in the mobile operator MTS provide a sound platform for cash generation capacity of the holding securing high level of cash dividend upstream to the group. The future consolidation of competitive local exchange carriers into MGTS and benefits from the continuing fixed-line tariff rebalancing are likely to strengthen revenue growth in this business area of the group. The assigned ratings also reflect Fitch’s positive view on the quality of SISTEMA JSFC’ management and high level of financial transparency underpinned by the adoption of IAS reporting system and international audit reports.

In October 2002 the rating agency Standard & Poor''s (S&P) gave SISTEMA JSFC long-term Foreign and Local currency ‘B-‘ ratings. The outlook is ‘Stable’. Among companies of SISTEMA JSFC with S&P’s long-term credit ratings are Moscow City Telephone Network JSC (?-/Stable/) and Mobile TeleSystems JSC (?+/Stable/). In August 2002 Fitch Ratings assigned international credit ratings to MBRD JSB (short-term ‘?’ rating, long-term ‘?-‘ rating).

Currently SISTEMA JSFC owns and manages over 200 enterprises in different sectors of the economy including telecommunications (MTS, MGTS, MTU-Inform, Telmos, Comstar and a number of other leading telecommunications companies), electronics (NIIME and MIKRON plant as well as a number of other microelectronics enterprises), insurance (ROSNO), radio engineering (the academician A.L. Mints radio technical institute, NPK NIDAR and others), real estate and construction (SISTEMA-HALS), oil and oil products (UIC NEDRA, FIC KEDR-?), retail (Detsky Mir trading house), finances and securities (MBRD JSB), mass media (newspapers Rossia, Smena, Metro, Literaturnaya gazeta, Rosbalt agency, Maxima communication group), tourism (Intourist), sports (Olympiyskaya sistema), medicine (MTH medical technological holding). The market value of SISTEMA JSFC’ assets is estimated to be in the order of USD3 billion.