VTB Bank, a Russian universal bank, completed the acquisition of 44.8% stake in SafeData, a provider of data centre services, IT-outsoursing, webhosting, telecom services, from Rostelecom, a provider of digital services and solutions, for $464.3m. "Rostelecom is our long-term, reliable partner, and the entry into the capital of RTK-DPC is another step in continuing our strategic cooperation. We see great potential in the joint development of the data center business and the cloud division of RTK and synergy with VTB Bank's initiatives to introduce cloud technologies and digitalize business processes. We believe that RTK-DPC will be the main beneficiary of the ever-growing demand for cloud services. This segment is experiencing significant deferred demand due to the slow implementation of technologies in the Russian market. Now that the global environment involves the interaction of companies and customers in digital ecosystems in real time, organizations are betting on the use of cloud models. In addition, companies from the technology sector are a priority among investors," Yuri Soloviev, VTB Bank First Deputy President and Chairman.