BCR, which posted €541 million in profit last year, will continue to be profitable even at a RON 5/€1, said bankers who administer the most profitable bank in the system, as its foreign currency exposure is only 50 percent.
“I expect the leu to stabilize at this level. If the leu depreciates, then there will be more debtors who will want to talk about extending maturities. Less than 5,000 clients with mortgages have requested the renegotiation of contracts, which means about five people per branch, considering that BCR has 650 branches. We want to talk with clients who have lost their jobs and cannot find a new one,” Bruynseels told Business Standard.
As far as the bank’s profitability is concerned, BCR’s CEO added that a 10 percent increase in revenues would be a very good result for the bank, especially considering the difficult situation of the Romanian economy. BCR, 70 percent of which is controlled by Erste Bank, will grant dividends representing 40 percent of the net profit obtained in 2008.
Erste Bank decided to extend BCR’s territorial expansion by a further 40-50 branches, so the network will include 700 units by year-end. This decision is in contrast with that of most banks that have opted for halting the expansion process. “I think that, at a 25 percent market share, we still have a small client base, of only 2.5 million individuals. In Romania, the degree of brokerage is low, there is room to grow,” said Bruynseels.
