BA-CA and Ion Tiriac have reached a pre-agreement in this regard. “Romania is the strategic focus of our bank. We thus keep our promise of strengthening our presence in this country at an early stage of its convergence with Europe. This gives us a significant lead over our direct competitors“, says Erich Hampel, Chief Executive Officer of BA-CA. Both banks, HVB Bank Romania and Banca Tiriac, are well managed. They operate profitably and will be even stronger as a merged unit. A further objective is to develop the existing market share swiftly beyond 10 per cent in Romania.
The merger will create a new bank under the name “HVB Tiriac”. “We are proud of including the name Tiriac in our logo. The name Tiriac is associated with success and dynamic growth, not only in Romania but also in the rest of the world“, says BA-CA CEO Erich Hampel. Bank Austria Creditanstalt will hold over 50 per cent of the shares in HVB Tiriac and will have full responsibility for controlling the business of HVB Tiriac.
“The two banks fit together perfectly. With this merger, we are able to further benefit from the dynamic Romanian financial market development. I was reluctant to sell Banca Tiriac but am very excited with the project of merging with HVB Bank Romania. I am very proud of the achievements accomplished by the management and the 1,100 employees of the bank which bears my name. Alongside with our 685,000 customers, they are the real value of Banca Tiriac”, says Ion Tiriac.
BA-CA has been active in Romania since 1998 through its subsidiary HVB Bank Romania. HVB Bank Romania is currently the seventh-largest local bank, with total assets of about EUR 1.4 billion, 320 employees, 12 branches and some 32,000 customers. “Our colleagues in Romania have built up an excellent bank within a few years. Today, HVB Bank Romania is the most profitable unit in our network. I am proud of these outstanding achievements” says BA-CA CEO Hampel. “The merger of the two banks ideally combines HVB Bank Romania’s strengths in corporate business, treasury operations and private banking with Banca Tiriac’s strong presence in classic retail business”, he adds.
Banca Tiriac has a nationwide network of 60 offices, total assets of EUR 706 million (as at 31 March 2005) and a market share of 2.9 per cent1, which makes it number 11 in the Romanian banking market. The bank was created in 1991.
With combined total assets of about EUR 2,080 million and 72 branches, HVB Bank Romania and Banca Tiriac will become number 4 among banks in Romania, ranking after BCR (26.1% market share ), BRD (13.0%), Raiffeisen Bank Romania (9.2%), and ahead of CEC (5.9%).
„The merger with Banca Tiriac provides a strong base for our further growth in Romania. Our market position will also lead to significantly higher revenues and even stronger growth than we would have been able to achieve on our own. Today we expect that we will be able to more than double the results in Romania compared with the current levels”, says BA-CA CEO Erich Hampel. The merger is expected to take place before the end of this year and is subject to approval by all relevant authorities.
Within HVB Group, Bank Austria Creditanstalt is responsible for business in the markets of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). The bank operates the leading network in the region, serving more than 4.6 million customers in 11 countries. BA-CA has won numerous awards in recognition of its CEE competence: most recently, in summer 2004, „Euromoney” and „The Banker” named Bank Austria Creditanstalt „Best Bank in CEE” and „Bank of the Year in CEE”, respectively.
