The group official said OTP has looked at two local banks so far, but there was no agreement reached, since the vendors overvalued the banks. Price is the main issue in this operation, according to Wolf.
He added the OTP group is not involved in any negotiations at the moment, but talks may be resumed in the second half of the year, for the takeover of a bank in Romania. Features sought in the targeted lender include low funding needs and a good client base.
The Romanian subsidiary of the OTP group is a medium-size bank, ranking 15th among local lenders in terms of assets.
The OTP group first announced in 2009 that it is looking to buy a Romanian bank. In the first half of 2011, the group negotiated the takeover of RBS Bank Romania, but the process was halted since the price was considered too high.
OTP Bank Romania posted a net profit of 13 million lei (EUR2.97 million) last year, compared to a loss of RON98 million in 2010.
The group is the largest entity on its segment in Central and Eastern Europe. It is active in Hungary, Romania, Montenegro, Croatia, Bulgaria, Russia, Ukraine, Slovakia and Serbia, serving more than 12 million clients through a network of some 1,500 units.
The OTP group is present on the local market through OTP Bank Romania, OTP Leasing Romania, OTP Consulting Romania and OTP Asset Management Romania. (EUR1=RON4.3788)