Herman Gref: “Investing in people is of utmost importance”

Herman Gref, Sberbank CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board, participated in the plenary session called Russia Forum: Driving the Future held in the framework of the international EXPO 2020 in Dubai. Sber is a title partner of the Russian part of the Expo.

The panelists discussed the future of the global and domestic economy and the most attractive investment fields, projects and technologies that let stakeholders overcome geopolitical, social and economic challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is extremely difficult to predict how the global economy will develop decades and even years from now, because everything is changing extremely quickly, said Herman Gref. Therefore, we need to discuss what people, companies, institutions and states should be so that no matter how the economy changes, we can adapt to it.

Technology is today's strongest trend, which shows how the world will change, emphasized Herman Gref. Humans cannot develop at the rate of technology, and this is a key contradiction. As a result, companies and countries are faced with structural unemployment and a growing global labor shortage. Therefore, human capital and investing in people have the utmost importance in the current environment.

Herman Gref, CEO, Chairman of the Executive Board, Sberbank:

"People should be stress-resistant and have mature soft skills these days. Therefore, personalization of everything - commercial services, healthcare, education - is a global trend. People capable of changing very quickly and flexibly to the changing world should be groomed."

Russia has tremendous opportunities for investors due to the lack of proper competition in a number of sectors and, as a result, high profit margins, said Herman Gref. For example, the return on capital in Russia's financial sector is twice as high as in Europe. Huge opportunities are available in agriculture, which has great potential for high tech implementation. Amid the green transition, the importance of transport logistics is increasing dramatically, because Russian north routes are becoming vital for the entire world, allowing to bridge continents in a completely different way. ROC is tremendous in high-tech, since both global and national platforms, including e-commerce ones, are successfully developing in Russia.

According to Herman Gref, traditional energy sectors in Russia can still welcome investors, because in the next 15-20 years they will remain relevant. Moreover, Russia has tremendous opportunities to develop renewable energy sources. According to Sber estimates, the green transition will require USD 1 tn in investments until 2050, of which USD 800 bn can be found domestically through the development of forests and other opportunities for selling greenhouse gas quotas on the domestic and foreign markets.

Herman Gref, CEO, Chairman of the Executive Board, Sberbank:

"Russia is about to face a major transformation, which also brings ample opportunities. Capital always considers the risk-to-profit ratio, and in the next decade, Russia will be one of the most attractive global markets, considering the current trends."

Other panel session participants delivering their reports were Minister of Industry and Trade of Russia Denis Manturov, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Director General of ROSATOM Alexey Likhachev, CEO of Management Company METALLOINVEST LLC Nazim Efendiev, and Ozon CEO Alexander Shulgin.

Russia Forum: Driving the Future is dedicated to international and Russian-Arab cooperation in the fields of economics and investment. Supported by the Roscongress Foundation, the event discusses investment opportunities in Russia and presents flagship projects aimed at introducing new technology, developing innovative business models and services in energy, healthcare, tourism, IT, transport and finance.