The central bank had banned the bank from selling loans as the former shareholder was unable to support it with capital and its solvability had dropped below the minimum legal level.
“We will start lending next month, but we do not want to be too aggressive with loan sales. We will have a rational approach, we want to get to know the market well before. The bank now holds enough capital and when it needs new capital, we will bring it,” stated Rafal Juszczak, chief executive officer of Getin Holding and president of RIB’s managing board, in an interview with ZF.
He states that the first move the Polish group made right after acquiring the bank was to set up provisions for soured loans and then started recapitalizing the bank so that solvability and liquidity should go back above the legal limits.
The Polish group has already sold two portfolios of bad loans to firms specializing in arrears recovery. “We’ve got rid of many bad loans and for the left ones we set up solid provisions,” says Juszczak.
However, he chose not to disclose the level of bad loans. In December 2012, almost 30% of the bank’s exposure to companies and individuals was included in the category of bad loans.
Getin Holding boss says that RIB will be used as a platform for the development of Romanian operations and that depending on opportunities emerging on the market the group is likely to acquire another domestic bank to strengthen its footing.
Getin raised RIB’s capital by EUR6.2 million in two stages and granted the bank two subordinated loans. However, Juszczak says that the bank’s main funding source will be deposits and the bank will shortly launch a campaign in this field. He states the bank will have an interest rate level close to the market average.
The Polish group does not plan to turn RIB into a niche player though this is the profile matching a small bank. RIB will operate as a universal bank, focusing on products and services destined to individuals and small and middle-sized companies Juszczak hopes to bring the bank into the league of medium-sized players in 3-5 years.
RIB in late 2013 held just 0.1% of the market, meaning a total volume of managed assets of around EUR80 million.
Getin analyzed the Romanian market for 2-3 years before acquiring RIB, with the size of the market being the main argument for the Polish group. Polish companies also hold significant operations in Romania. The volume of Polish investments in Romania stood at EUR242 million at the end of 2012. “We want to become the first choice for Poland companies present in Romania and we will set up a special department for them”.
RIB currently operates through a 34-branch and agency network and the Polish group plans to open another 4-5 new units this year and re-launch Internet banking. The bank now has around 30,000 clients.
The bank will change its name this autumn and the Polish group will bring in Romania a brand under which it operates in Poland, Ukraine and Belarus-Idea Bank.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)