Innovative development of regional economies is associated, among other things, with the effective countering of manifested and predicted threats in the external environment. Identifying the likelihood and strength of such threats is a weakly structured problem requiring the use of expert assessments. In order to obtain expert evaluations from representatives of the banking sector we developed a questionnaire that includes a list of questions established professionally and logically, taking into account the results presented in the secondary literature. The analysis of the expert assessments allowed us to identify the composition of threats significant in terms of their influence and marked with a high probability of occurrence. The first threat lies in lack the funds necessary to finance projects to develop and implement technological and product innovations. Second, Russia observes a deterioration of the general institutional environment. Third, there exist barriers to including innovative Russian companies in international production cooperation. The paper identifies the subjects whose competencies include implementing targeted measures designed to ensure the limitation (prevention) of the above threats.

Предмет: стратегическое планирование развития крупных городов в российской и зарубежной практике. Цель: выявление особенностей и достижений современной практики разработки стратегий развития крупных городов в России и зарубежных странах. Методология: использован метод контент-анализа стратегий развития крупных городов, дополненный методом сравнительного анализа представленных в них направлений и ключевых задач развития объектов стратегиче-ского планирования, инструментов управления, востребованных в их решении. Информационная база анализа включает разработанные в соответствии с требованиями Федерального закона Российской Федерации от 28 июня 2014 г. №172 «О стратегическом планировании в Российской Федерации» стратегии социально-экономического развития Воронежа, Казани, Калининграда, Магнитогорска, Новосибирска, Пензы, Ростова-на-Дону, Твери, Тольятти, Улан-Удэ, а также стратегии развития зарубежных городов  Бристоля и Глазго (Великобритания), Лейпцига (Германия), Миссиссоги и Монреаля (Канада), Окленда (США), Тампере (Финляндия). Результаты: к позитивным моментам практики стратегического планирования отнесены активное участие в разработке стратегических документов разных групп стейкхолдеров и высокий уровень разнообразия инструментов, обеспечивающих такое участие (зарубежная практика), широкий спектр задач разработки стратегий, включающий оценку достигнутых целей, обоснование миссии, приоритетов и задач развития территорий, оценку совокупного потенциала развития города, установление его конкурентных преимуществ, определение показателей достижения целей и механизма реализации стратегии, оценку необходимых финансовых ресурсов (практики продвинутых российских городов). Другой позитивный момент  ввод в практику новых инструментов публичного управления, запланированный в ряде муниципальных стратегий: инициативное бюджетирование, городской фонд образовательных инноваций, маркетинговый план города, «налоговые каникулы» для впервые зарегистрированных индивидуальных предпринимателей, соглашения и договоры с другими городами, городские облигации для развития инфраструктуры, краудфандинг, наукоград в сфере информационных технологий с льготами особой экономической зоны, интерактивный цифровой мониторинг с использованием геолокации городских объектов, коворкинги для инновационного и креативного предпринимательства, проектный офис внедрения инструментов цифровой экономики, частно-государственный фонд посевных инвестиций, налоговые льготы для субъектов социального предпринимательства (практики продвинутых российских городов).

The paper focuses on the assessment of the modern practice of regional policy planning of new industrialization, and the identification of its strengths and weaknesses. In order to obtain the desired estimate, the author's methodological approach was applied, which provides the inclusion in the sample of objects of analysis of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation representing different Federal districts; the use of the updated strategies for the socio-economic development of the regions as an information base developed in accordance with the requirements of the Federal Law of June 28, 2014 No. 172 “On strategic planning in the Russian Federation”; the selection as a subject of the directions analysis, tasks, expected effects of the regional policy of new industrialization; the use of the methods of content analysis and comparative analysis. The strengths and weaknesses of the modern practice of regional policy planning of new industrialization are identified and substantively disclosed. The strengths of strategic planning for the new industrialization inherent in the electoral composition of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation should become invariant characteristics of regional practice. The identified weaknesses predetermine the need for systemic changes in the content of the named policy, including the expansion of the composition of its directions, tasks, effects.

The aim of the study is to assess the modern Russian practice of strategizing social and economic development of large cities. Methods used for the research were content analysis of urban strategies developed in accordance with the requirements of Federal Law No. 172-FZ “On Strategic Planning in the Russian Federation”, followed by a logical and comparative analysis of methodological approaches to address key objectives of strategizing tested in practice. These tasks include: assessment of the achieved goals and the social and economic development potential of a large city, identification of its competitive advantages, justification of strategic goals and targets, definition of the appropriate amount of financial resources, selection of the strategy implementation mechanism. Object database of our study includes the cities of Voronezh, Kazan, Kaliningrad, Magnitogorsk, Novosibirsk, Penza, Rostov-on-Don, Tver, Tolyatti and Ulan-Ude. The analysis made it possible to identify several significant weaknesses inherent in the mass practice of strategic municipal planning. The first one is the inadequacy of the used methodological approaches to the complicated character of key tasks of municipal strategy development. The second one concerns the absence of clear, unambiguously interpreted requirements that define the required quality level for the results obtained in the solution of key tasks. The third one is a non-systematic planning process, manifested in weak coordination between the main components of the strategy (mission and strategic goals, strategic goals and objectives, strategic goals and management tools and financial resources that ensure their achievement). The fourth one is the limited number of participants when developing strategies, which significantly reduces the abilities to include the interests of different stakeholder groups. The main reasons for the presence of these weaknesses were determined. In order to improve the quality of strategic municipal planning it is necessary to focus the activities of public authorities on their elimination.

The purpose of the study is to assess the level of the asymmetry of the Russian banking system, as well as to identify the factors influencing the state of the interbank competition in the context of the digitalization of banking activities. The statistical data for 2011–2019 of the Bank of Russia were used as an information base. The study allowed to evaluate the contemporary domestic market of banking services as an oligopoly market with a competitive environment and concentration in the federal center, which negatively affects the development of interbank competition in the country. The revealed external and internal factors affecting the state of interbank competition allow to identify possible directions for improving the regulatory framework and structure of the Russian banking system in the context of digitalization of the economy as a whole and banking activity in particular, especially in the direction of developing interbank competition for the purpose of improving banking services for the real sector of the economy. The authors argue that the decentralization of cash flows of credit organizations, taking into account the regional component, is to be made.

Subject of research. Strategizing (strategic planning) of the development of the scientific and innovative sphere of the Russian Federation subjects.The purpose of the study. The purpose of the study is to assess the current practice of strategic planning of the development of the scientific and innovative sphere of the Russian Federation (regions), to identify its inherent positive aspects and limitations.Methodology. The method of content analysis of strategies for socio-economic development of regions was used, supplemented by a comparative analysis of the key tasks presented in them for the development of the scientific and innovative sphere and the measures that the public authorities intend to implement. The information base of the analysis includes updated strategies for social and economic development of the Voronezh, Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, and Samara regions developed in accordance with the requirements of the Federal law of the Russian Federation No. 172 of June 28, 2014 «on strategic planning in the Russian Federation».Results and discussion. The positive aspects of the strategy practice include setting tasks related to the development of the market for intellectual property objects, venture financing, international production cooperation of enterprises, and the export of innovative products. Another positive aspect is the development of measures that are relatively new for most regions. These include measures to ensure: the creation of technology and innovation support centers based on higher education institutions, the formation of leading research centers, including world-class ones; promotion of innovative developments of small and medium-sized businesses to foreign markets; consolidation of young specialists in science and innovative activities; solution of social, housing and professional problems of young scientists and prospective researchers; creation of an environment for online communications between innovation developers, business and government agencies; promotion of innovative culture through mass media and the Internet; implementation of information policy aimed at increasing the prestige of innovation and scientific activities. Among the limitations of the practice of strategizing is defined: carried out only in a few strategies, setting new targets for the development of scientific-innovative sphere; selectivity of the proposed measures concerning the composition of the key objectives identified.Conclusions. Identified positive aspects and limitations of contemporary practice in strategies of scientific-innovation sphere indicate the need for learning from the experience of advanced regions, demand for policy formation necessary key tasks of its development and measures to ensure their effective solution.

The purpose of the study is to assess the modern practice of strategizing the regional policy on the development of the digital economy, to reveal its advantages and disadvantages. Methodology. For assessment we employed our own methodical approach including the sampling of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation representing different Federal Districts as objects of the study; using the analysis of updated strategies of socio-economic development of regions as an information base; the directions, objectives, expected results and mechanism for the implementation of the regional policy on the development of the digital economy as subject-matter of the study; application of content analysis of regional strategies together with the method of comparative analysis. Results. We revealed and substantially explained the advantages and disadvantages of the modern practical strategizing of regional policies on the development of the digital economy. Recommendations. The advantages of the strategizing digital economy development typical for a limited number of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation should become the invariant features of local practices. The disadvantages revealed predetermine the need for systemic changes in the strategizing of these policies, including the expansion of its directions and objectives, the addition of qualitative characteristics of the expected results with quantitative ones, increasing the diversity of forms and tools through which government authorities jointly with the business ensure the development of the digital economy.

The purpose of the paper is to identify the most efficient directions and tools of digital transformation for commercial banks, problems, and threats to the digitalization of the banking sector. Methodology. In the course of the study, we employed a systematic approach to reveal patterns of banking transformation in terms of economic digitalization; methods of comparative analysis to justify the most forward-looking areas and tools for digitalization of banking activities; synthesis, classification, groupings, observation. Results. The study made it possible to determine the following global areas of banking digitalization: a remote service model when the bank is mobile, and all services are available via applications for smartphones; technologies hidden from clients (petabytes of information and statistical models). The main digitalization tools include big data in proactive communication with clients; marketplace; robotization; blockchain technology; video integration; the use of chatbots and virtual assistants; making up virtual reality (VR); utilization of biometrics in the banking sector. Recommendations. The digitalization of banking activities poses significant threats to both the commercial banks and their clients primarily due to cyber attacks, high operational risks, growth of unemployment rate in the banking sector, the fact that some part of clients is not able to exist in the digital space. For such threats to be partially eliminated one need to upgrade the banking business environment with regard to developmental trends of the digital economy (regulatory, professional, cognitive issues); to check the reliability of bank clients in terms of transaction threshold amounts; to launch the programs raising the financial literacy of the population.

The authors study the content and structure of strategic goals of Russia’s regions in the conditions of economic and financial limitation of the 2010’s. The global and Russian experience of strategic planning show the necessity for setting the system of goals that correspond to internal parameters and external conditions of socio-economic systems. At that, the goals must have quantitative characteristics. The authors study goal settings of a range of regions of the Russian Federation and substantiate and approbate – by the example of Voronezh Oblast – the theoretical and methodological approach to formation of the system of interconnected indicators that reflect achievement of the set strategic goals of region’s socio-economic development. As a result of the research, the content of strategic goals of socio-economic development of Voronezh Oblast is offered and the indicators of their achievement are determined.

Purpose Determining the methods of changes that ensure achievement of their goals with preservation of basic parameters of socio-economic systems. Discussion Any real socio-economic system, being open and interacting with the external environment, experiences certain fluctuations (random deviations of the system from a certain average state). Under the influence of energy and things that come from the outside, these fluctuations strengthen and start “shattering” the old ties between the elements of the system. The fluctuations are random deviations from the balance in the course of interaction with the environment; with the weakening of internal ties, random changes lead to the necessity for changes of the system. At the same time, the necessity for changes does not mean their determination. Which direction of further movement near the critical point is selected by the system depends primarily on the range of random circumstances or targeted management. Results During selection of the direction of changes, the sub-system of management should take into account that in a new state the managed system should adopt enough inputs from the environment for its preservation—in order to compensate the output and spending of energy and materials used in the process of functioning.

An important feature of financial innovation (new financial products and financial technologies) is the increased complexity of managing their risks, which in case, the realization and multiplication in areas of influencing the state is not only the financial markets of individual countries, generating such innovation, but also the global financial market as a whole. The purpose of this article is to identify the financial risks generated during the creation and circulation of financial instruments; Characteristics of ways to reduce these risks associated with the choice of directions for their redistribution between creditors, borrowers and financial intermediaries; Justification of the possibilities of financial innovation in terms of the separation of certain types of risks.

The article presents the research results of the economic and social situation in Russian territories in 2013-2015 obtained by calculation of indicators characterising the level and quality of life in the territories under analysis. The assessment of the quality of life in territorial entities of the Russian Federation, including the Central Federal District (CFD) of the Russian Federation (except Moscow and Moscow Region), was carried out using the following group of indicators: quality of the population; level of the income of the population; working conditions; population provided with comfortable housing; healthcare services; safety of the population; quality of environmental management system. The authors assess strong and weak points of the reduction of social and economic asymmetry within territorial entities of the Russian Federation by 2016, which have to be considered when developing a qualitatively updated strategy of regional development for the 2020-2025 period. After carrying out the analysis for the CFD, the following findings have been obtained: The average income growth is observed in all the cities, except for Volgograd, Kostroma, Kurgan, Samara and Saratov. The population with the income below the subsistence level increased in all the analysed regions. The greatest natural population decline was observed in Vladimir, Smolensk, Tambov, Tver and Tula regions, whereas Belgorod, Yaroslavl, Voronezh, Lipetsk and Kostroma regions displayed a positive dynamic. The slow growth of housing indicator is observed in all the cities. The change in the number of doctors in the considered regions from 2013 to 2015 shows a beneficial situation in Oryol, Belgorod, Bryansk, Kostroma, Tambov and Tula regions where an increase in the number of doctors of all specialties per 10,000 inhabitants is observed. In other regions, we have noted a drop in the number of doctors. We noted an increase in the indicator "Number of the Registered Crimes per 100,000 inhabitants" in all the regions from 2014 to 2015, which is a negative trend.

The goal of this article is to assess the modern Russian practice of university infiltration into the region's business environment, to identify the results of international practices of university and business effective integration, and to substantiate the necessity of taking measures to ensure the development of the above mentioned process in Russia. To achieve the goal we used an interrelated combination of system approach, comparative and strategic analyses, organizational modelling, and applying of empirical and factual information interpretation. The weaknesses of the modem Russian practice of universities infiltration into the business environment and main limitations of the development of this process have been determined; effective forms and tools that are peculiar to international experience in the integration of universities and businesses are identified; the measures ensuring the development of this integration in Russian regions are substantiated. The presented results are theoretically and practically significant because they expand understanding of the content, directions and economic and organizational support of the process of infiltration of organizations playing a major role in the development of human capital and technological and organizational novations into business environment; measures necessary for the development of this process in the regions of Russia. The article reveals the importance of universities infiltration into regional business environment when achieving the strategic goal of the innovative renovation of the economy, The authors have selected effective forms and tools through which the integration of universities and business in international practices is carried out. Measures necessary for ensuring the development of this integration in Russian regions are substantiated.

The purpose of this chapter is to determine positions of representatives of public authorities and large and small business as to perspectives of region’s development in the long term. Discussion: Development of administrative and territorial entities of various countries depends on positions of various institutional groups as to the possibilities provided by external and internal environment. With a certain degree of convention, it is possible to suppose that expectations are realized in actions of various groups. The performed analysis is based on the idea that the most significant groups of the Russian society at the regional level are public authorities and large business. They accumulate the two most important resources—administrative power and capital. Small business is represented in this chapter as a background. Voronezh Oblast is a specific object of the research, represented in the country. However, most of position that reflect the possibilities of socio-economic development of the region are not specific and could be viewed as common for most of Russian regions. Results: This chapter analyzes positions of representatives of public authorities and business as to possibilities of region’s development. The received results allow stating that all groups of experts think that the strongest and most probable possibility is increase of financing of defense and military complex enterprises. Significant possibilities are the following: expansion of scales of financing of region’s economy development, performed by private investors; growth of demand for products of enterprises of agro-industrial complex of the region in the world market; realization of the federal programs of development of import substitution perspective directions; federal authorities’ making decisions on creation of territories with subsidized conditions of economic activities. As for expansion of business’s participation in solving social problems, the positions are different. The least significant and least probable possibilities are the following: growth of demand for educational services of regional universities; using the existing recreational resource and converting the income of shadow economy into open financial resources.

The development of modern technology leads to the decentralization of the management of socio-economic systems. In business, it finds expression in the formation of business networks. In the government's economic policy is manifested in a shift of the center of decision-making from the national to the regional level. These national models of regional development policy are differed. They are differed in the level of effectiveness. This gives rise to the desire to borrow foreign institutions effective management of regional development. Unfortunately, the use of the best foreign experience is not always successful. To neutralize the failures of such actions are required a comparison of national models of regional development policy. Be sure to highlight their typical, universal components, and specific components. This kind of analysis allows to selecting of the elements of effective policy development and implementing them in the practice of public administration.The aim of this study is a comparative analysis and systematization of the experiences of various countries in the development and implementation of regional development policy, taking into account the allocation of the universal and national-specific methods of state management of development of areas.Methods: a literature review, expert evaluation, comparison, system and content analysis.The study authors are systematized principles of regional development policy. The necessity of a strategic approach to development management is shown. The analysis of effective national models of regional development policy, highlighted in their specific and generic parameters is made. Authors offered an approach to the development of effective national model of regional development based on the account of foreign experience.Results of the study are recommended for use in the practice of public authorities in the development and implementation of public policy regulating social and economic development at the regional level.

The paper represents an evaluation technique of clustering conditions characterized by using the iterative' method. The main goal of the first stage is to evaluate technical and technological conditions of cluster. formation in every region some industries and enterprises are selected to be the "core" of future cluster. For this purpose localization factor, specialization ratio and per capita production ratio are being estimated. As a result, virtual clusters are formed, promising to turn into real ones. Then we aim at the evaluation and development of socio-economic and institutional conditions of the regions required to form actual clustering. In the second place the system-wide clustering conditions are estimated considering a set of indicators of socio-economic conditions which are hopeful for regional clustering. After that we carry out classification and ranking based on a set of statistical ratios. It results in virtual cluster formation differing in adequacy level of technical and technological, socio-economic conditions in order to form real clusters. Further in the fourth place virtual cluster analysis is practiced in order to identify both its general strengths and weaknesses. Finally, at the fifth stage formal and informal regional institutions are being estimated with respect to each virtual cluster. The development measures of socioeconomic and institutional processes are being worked out for those regions in which they are going to form clusters. As a result we have obtained the data concerned the promising regional industries of Central Federal District to be involved into clustering. Besides, the authors have evaluated the platform of district regions to form radioelectronic cluster.

In 2014-2015 a number of additional problems connected with financing of Russian organizations came to light. External restrictions (the sanction of the western countries) were added to the ongoing structural crisis in domestic economy. The sanctions inflicted by EU countries and the USA substantially affect the sphere of financial provision of the Russian organizations and limit their presence in the international financial markets. Closing of channels of external financing not only aggravates the problem of the financial market, but also threatens prospects of long-term investment growth and development of Russian organizations.This article describes the features of financing of Russian organizations which have developed under the influence of the crisis in the domestic economy in 2014-2015 and economic sanctions against Russia.

The authors focused public policy, it is proved that cluster policy in all countries of the world is becoming a more effective direction. Considered cluster as socio-economic and institutional system. The factors contributing to and hindering the development of clusters in different countries. Reviewed the content and features of cluster formation in Russia. Formed a new approach to regional cluster policy.