MOSCOW, September 26 (RIA Novosti) - National Reserve Bank, one of Russia's leading financial institutions, said Tuesday it was planning to open a specialized mortgage bank with charter capital of about $100 million in 2007.

"The registration process of a new bank [with the Bank of Russia] has started," said Yury Kudimov, NRB management board chairman. "We are planning to open it in the first quarter of 2007."

The new mortgage bank will be created on the basis of an NRB regional branch and 25%-49% of its charter capital could be sold to a foreign financial institution with advanced mortgage loan experience, the NRB executive said.

The new specialized bank is expected to absorb 5%-10% of the mortgage market in Russia with a loan portfolio of about $1 bln in the next three-four years.

NRB's president is ex-KGB officer turned oligarch Alexander Lebedev. Forbes has put his fortune at about $3.5 billion and he is also a member of the lower chamber of Russia's parliament, the State Duma.