Brokers to opt for merger or bankruptcy in 2009

The managers of brokerage companies think differently. If some of these see mergers as a possible solution in 2009, others believe that broker egos will again prevent the finalizing of such projects.    

Brokers say that the first companies to look for survival solutions will be ones which administer less than €1 million monthly. Data provided by the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) indicates that almost half of the brokers facilitated transactions below €1 mln in November.

Very few mergers have been finalized to date, due to lack of agreement on company valuation.  

“The main problem now is the serious lack of clients, and a company’s most important assets are its people and client portfolio,” said Lucian Isac, General Manager of Estinvest.