“No bank can maintain its forecast growth targets, due to the international crisis,” said sources in the system. Andreas Treichl, Chief Executive Officer of Erste Bank, continues to count on growth in countries in Central and Eastern Europe. “Although the Erste Group’s basic markets – the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, and Austria – have their own problems, they are in a far better position as a whole to overcome this crisis, compared to the rest of Europe. Moreover, the solid and continuous increases in our revenues prove the advantages of a retail-oriented business model,” said Treichl.
Erste planned for BCR’s net profit to rise by 40 percent between 2006 and 2009, in order to regain more than 10 percent of the €3.75 billion paid for the takeover by the end of 2009.
