BCR sold corporate loans granted in the pre-Erste period

At the end of August, Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR), the largest lender in Romania, sold a significant package of loans granted to some small and medium-sized and micro enterprises between 1998 and 2005.

This is the first loan package registered by BCR in the Electronic Archive of Mobile Real Guarantees (AEGRM) for which the currency is unspecified. The bank sold receivables whose value was listed at the end of August 2009 as being worth over 734 million to Suport Colect, a company part of the BCR group. When contacted by Business Standard, bank officials declined to indicate the currency in which these loans was registered and sold.

"It is preferable that the BCR portfolio improve. In this period, the bank must focus on new investments," the President of the SIF Transilvania financial investment company, Mihai Fercala, told Business Standard.

The five financial investment companies (SIF) control a 30.12 percent package of BCR's capital.

SIF representatives will meet tomorrow with the Chairman of the Erste Bank's Board, Andreas Treichl, and Manfred Wimmer, Erste's Chief Financial Officer and former Chief Executive Officer of BCR, to discuss the recent decision by the Austrian group to transfer its exposure on the Romanian bank to a limited company, established in Vienna. The President of the company that manages SIF Muntenia, Petre Pavel Szel, said that it is possible that this loan package will be part of a more ample restructuring program. "We will know more tomorrow, at the meeting with Erste officials, where we will also talk about modifying Erste Bank's ownership at BCR," said Szel.

standard.money.ro