RBI Holdings, a Russian property developer and investor active in the city of St Petersburg, plans to invest $500 mln (EUR 360 mln) in the next two years to acquire land plots in other Russian regions as it launches an expansion strategy designed to make it a national player.

RBI Holdings, a Russian property developer and investor active in the city of St Petersburg, plans to invest $500 mln (EUR 360 mln) in the next two years to acquire land plots in other Russian regions as it launches an expansion strategy designed to make it a national player.

'Over a five year period we should be able to realise projects of any scale in any location,' Eduard Tikhtinsky, chairman of the board of the company, said at a press conference. In addition to St. Petersburg, the company said it would focus on the cities of Moscow, Kiev, Yekaterinburg, Perm, Nizhny Novgorod, Tyumen, Ufa, and Alma-Ata. RBI plans to use both its own financial resources and those of business partner Deutsche Bank and shareholder Morgan Stanley.

RBI will also branch away from its traditional premium-class and mid-range residential complexes to develop new types of projects. These will include business and shopping centres as well as multi-purpose complexes that combine commercial and residential areas.