The bank already opened two business centers for SMEs, in capital city Bucharest and the southeastern city of Constanta, and plans to open four new centers by the end of 2014.
The activity of the first two centers has led to a 30% increase in the number of SME customers within almost one year. The unit in Bucharest was inaugurated in the summer of 2013 and the unit in Constanta was opened in the spring of 2014.
The three centers, which have 60 dedicated specialists, serve around 550 SMEs.
The unit in Ploiesti targets firms with turnover of EUR500,000 to EUR5 million, which operate in the sectors of production, services, petrochemistry, oil and gas, the pharmaceutical and food industries, as well as in agriculture.
Piraeus Bank Romania’s net profit soared 90% to EUR4.6 million in the first quarter of 2014, from EUR2.4 million a year ago. At the end of March, Piraeus Bank Romania had total assets worth EUR1.98 billion, up 7% on the year.