“Strategically, we’re pursuing organic growth. That does not mean, tactically, that I won’t look at what becomes available. But our strategy is not based on a big acquisition,” Van Groningen said at an event organized in Limanu, Constanta County. Raiffeisen celebrates 20 years in Romania in 2017.
“I think we can grow organically. We all know the banking system will look different in five to ten years. We want to be a healthy bank, with a strong balance sheet, and able to cope with everything that’s going on.”
The Austrian-held bank has M&A experience. Raiffeisen Romania bought the local retail portfolio of Citi in 2013.
The Romanian banking market has been consolidating in the past few years. The number of banks dropped from 43 in 2008 to 36. Four banks disappeared from Romania’s central bank statistics in 2015: Volksbank (acquired by Banca Transilvnaia), RBS (retail and corporate portfolios bought by UniCredit), Millennium (bought by OTP Bank) and Montepio (exit).
The merger between Patria Bank and Banca Comerciala Carpatica was completed in the first half of 2017, as was the agreement for OTP to buy Banca Romaneasca. Talks on the sale of Bancpost have reached the final stage with Banca Transilvania.
Raiffeisen is one of the banks in Romania that posted profit even during the crisis. It posted EUR55 million net profit in the first half, up 2% on the year-ago period, while the new loans granted increased by 3%.
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)