Commercial bank of Romania becomes stockholder of Moldovan commercial bank

Chisinau, 16 January /MOLDPRES/ – Banca Transilvania (BT) of Romania announced that it became a shareholder of Victoriabank, the third largest bank in Moldova, with a share over 66 per cent, together with European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). BT and EBRD are majority shareholders of Victoriabank and strategic partners to support Moldova’s entrepreneurs and economy.

A today communiqué broadcast by Banca Transilvania mentions that "for the first time within recent ten years when a bank outside Moldova is investing in this market, BT opens the way for investments in neighbouring country."

However, Victoriabank becomes the fifth financial institution in Moldova, after ProCreditBank, Eximbank, Mobiasbanca – Groupe Societe Generale (GSG) and Romanian Commercial Bank (BCR), with a majority foreign capital. According to the National Bank of Moldova (BNM), share of foreign investments in the share capital of Moldovan banks amounted to 81 per cent in November 2017.

BT announced in November 2017 its plan to invest into Moldova and in the meantime received the approval for acquisition from the Romanian and Moldovan supervisory authorities – the National Bank of Romania (BNR), National Bank of Moldova (BNM) and Council of Competition of Moldova (CCM).

BT announces priorities for Victoriabank as a shareholder with EBRD, including supporting private business environment, especially sector of SME and Micro, developing a variety of products and services for individuals, aligning organizational culture and Victoriabank corporate governance with those ones of Financial Group Banca Transilvania.

Victoriabank has had nearly 30 years of activity, 540,000 customers, 1,400 employees and nearly 100 offices. It is the protagonist of some notable prizes on local banking market, such as the first issued card, the first ATM, the first POS and premium cards. Victoriabank is also noted by its card business: 285,000 cards, 17 per cent market share and over 37 per cent of the market as merchant card. The bank enjoys a very high degree of customer confidence: it has highest level of deposits in total assets on the entire market in Moldova of 80 per cent and ratio of loans/deposits is the lowest in the market – 39 per cent.

Banca Transilvania, the second largest bank in Romania, has 2.2 million customers, over 7,000 people in its team and over 500 offices. Financial Group Banca Transilvania presented in Moldova 10 years ago, when it launched BT Leasing MD, a market leader in the area as the value of fixed asset financing in leasing.

(Reporter V. Bercu, editor M. Jantovan)