Danila is to be replaced as of December 1 by the bank’s Executive Vice President, Austrian Manfred Wimmer, according to a press release from Erste Bank, the Austrian-based lender that owns the controlling interest in BCR.
The decision to replace Danila was made months ago, but was kept secret to avoid a possible negative impact on the capital market, as Erste Bank is listed on the stock exchange. “It was a decision made by Mr. Danila and the majority shareholder. Of course, it is not a sudden decision,” Erste Bank’s spokesman, Ionuþ Stanimir, told Business Standard. He added Danila’s resignation will not be followed by further lay-offs.
Romanian shareholders of BCR, however, said Danila is stepping down because of a number of disagreements he has with the majority shareholder, related to BCR’s strategy, and because the lender’s main competitor, BRD Groupe Societe Generale, posted better financial results. “I know that Danila had made a deal with Erste Bank for a longer term, and his resignation could be as sign that something did not work out well,” said Financial Investment Company (SIF) Transilvania’s President, Mihai Fercala. The company is minority shareholder of BCR and BRD.
According to Fercala, the vast BCR restructuring process Erste launched has affected the company’s financial results. “I am glad that BRD had good financial results, as we have shares there as well, but I am concerned about what is going on inside BCR,” he said.
