Digital Equipment Corp has won a key contract with the central bank of Russia. The company is to supply the hardware for a pilot project which will provide a clearing system for the Moscow Administration of the Central Bank of Russia. The deal leaves DEC in a very strong position in the fight for the huge roll-out programme. This is a real contract and we have real financial guarantees – this in not another of these billion dollar stories, says DEC Russia general manager Peter Sipos. He says the software is being provided by a third party company called Teleform – but would give no further details. The Central Bank of Russia is in overall charge of the commercial banking sector on Russia and has a regulatory function similar to central banks the world over. It also administers a clearing system for all commercial banks on Russian territory. It controls 1,300 accounting centres, 80 larger administrative offices and 43 main frame computer centres. The Moscow Administration, one of 80 regional administrations, is responsible for 220 commercial banks. Head of Automisation and Informatisation at the Moscow Administration, Yuri Bobolev, values the contract at about $1m. He says $800,000 is to be spent on DEC hardware. The Moscow administration says that it will initially acquire a VAX 4300 with a view to buying a VAX 3600 later on.
