geo/romania

Location
45.943161, 24.96676

Intesa Sanpaolo’s acquisition of First Bank in Romania

Intesa Sanpaolo acquires Romania’s First Bank from US-based private investment fund J.C. Flowers & Co., strengthening its presence in the CEE region and doubling the Group’s presence in the country.
 
More in detail, Intesa Sanpaolo and JCF Tiger Holdings S.A.R.L., the controlling shareholder of First Bank S.A., have signed a share purchase agreement for the acquisition of 99.98% of the shares in First Bank S.A..
 
First Bank is a commercial bank with 40 branches in Romania and with total assets of around €1.5 billion, focused on serving SMEs and retail customers.
 
Romania is a high-growth country - GDP growth is expected to surpass 3% over the next two years - with strong ties to Italy. The Group's expansion in the area will therefore further support the internationalization of Italian companies while supporting local clients.
 
The transaction is expected to close by the first quarter of 2024, pending approval by the competent regulatory authorities.
 
Intesa Sanpaolo is already present in Romania with Intesa Sanpaolo Bank Romania – part of the Group’s International Subsidiary Banks Division: with total assets of around €1.5 billion, it serves around 60,000 customers through 34 branches.
 
Intesa Sanpaolo’s International Subsidiary Banks Division
Intesa Sanpaolo’s International Subsidiary Banks Division (ISBD) is a key player in the financial landscape of the Central and Eastern European region: with 11 commercial banks in CEE and Egypt, along with a wealth management company in China, the Division operates across three continents.
 
Its expansive network caters to over 7 million clients, through nearly 900 branches and a dedicated workforce of some 21,000 employees.
 
In the first half of 2023, ISBD contributed significantly to Intesa Sanpaolo's profitability, accounting for 17% of the Group’s profits. The Division’s net income for the first half has more than tripled to €679 million.

Alpha Bank Romania Joins 150 Other Financial Institutions to Promote SME Finance 

Washington, D.C., August 6th, 2019Alpha Bank Romania became the newest member of the SME Finance Forum, a global membership network that brings together financial institutions, technology companies, and development finance institutions to share knowledge, spur innovation, and promote the growth of SMEs.

“200 million businesses worldwide need financing to invest, grow and create new jobs. We are proud to have Alpha Bank Romania join our network of more than 150 members who work to expand access to finance for small and medium businesses,” said Matthew Gamser, CEO of the Forum.

Alpha Bank Romania was the first foreign bank established in Romania in 1994 with an extended branch network of 130 units that covers 39 out of 41 counties in the country. Since then, Alpha Bank Romania has developed organically as a universal bank, offering a wide range of services and products, both for individuals and for SME & corporate sector.

“We are looking to expand our SME business by developing new products, services and technologies using the most recent best practices to strengthen our local competitive advantage, and we believe SME Finance Forum is a great network that brings together our key stakeholders”, said Dragos Radu Draghici, SME Division Manager of Alpha Bank Romania.

To see all SME Finance Forum members, please visit: https://www.smefinanceforum.org/members/member-list

About SME Finance Forum

The SME Finance Forum was established by the G20 Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) in 2012 as a knowledge center for data, research and best practice in promoting SME finance. As an implementing partner for the GPFI, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) was tasked with managing the initiative. In 2015, the SME Finance Forum partnered with CapitalPlus Exchange to expand and upgrade the former Small Business Banking Network.

About Alpha Bank Romania

Alpha Bank Romania was the first foreign bank established in Romania in 1994. Since then Alpha Bank Romania has developed organically as a universal bank offering a wide range of services and products, both for individuals and for SME & corporate sector. The bank ranked eighth in the Romanian banking system in 2017 with a market share in terms of assets of 3.66% (the latest official data from NBR Annual Report, 2017). Its extended branch network of 130 units covers 39 out of 41 counties in the country. Its credit portfolio is well balanced 53% to individuals and 47% to companies (Mar 2019). After being pioneer in launching housing loans in 2001, it was the first bank launching cover bonds in 2019. Moody's ratings agency rated the bank with Ba2.

Media Contact

Carina Carrasco

ccarrasco@worldbank.org

Romania

Submitted by tfang@ifc.org on
Country
Current Volume
18151301916
Finance gap
64128905564
Micro Women Gap
6827728367
Micro Men Gap
57301177197
MSME Women Gap
6827728367
MSME Men Gap
57301177197
Micro Gap ( Men and Women )
64128905564

Mambu

Mambu is a SaaS cloud banking platform. Their marketplace ecosystem includes integrations across credit decisioning, payment processing, AML, KYC, regulatory, CRM, accounting, customer experience and more.

Country / Region
Member Since
Organization Type
Location
52.5200066, 13.404954
Contact Person Name
Anna Krotova
Contact Person Title
Director, Sustainability
Contact Person Email
anna.krotova@mambu.com
City/Town location
berlin

FintechOS

End-to-end provider of SaaS-based front, middle and back office financial technology. FintechOS serves 40+ institutions - banks and insurers - in 20 markets and has offices in London, Amsterdam and Bucharest.

Country / Region
Member Since
Organization Type
Location
51.5073509, -0.1277583
Contact Person Name
Catalin Mocanu
Contact Person Title
Marketing Coordinator
Contact Person Email
catalin.mocanu@fintechos.com
City/Town location
London, UK
Operation countries

Paypal

Paypal’s open digital payments platform gives its more than over 270 million active account holders. better ways to manage and move money and offers flexibility when sending payments, paying or getting paid.

Country / Region
Member Since
Organization Type
Location
37.33874, -121.8852525
Contact Person Name
Usman Ahmed
Contact Person Title
Head of Public Policy
Contact Person Email
usahmed@paypal.com
City/Town location
San Jose, CA, USA
PipeDrive organization Id
234
Operation countries

Alpha Bank Romania

First foreign bank established in Romania in 1994, it has developed organically as an universal bank offering a wide range of services and products, both for individuals and for SMEs & corporate sector.

Country / Region
Member Since
Organization Type
Location
44.4267674, 26.1025384
Contact Person Name
Dragos Radu Draghici
Contact Person Title
SME Division Manager
City/Town location
București, Romania
PipeDrive organization Id
2696
Operation countries

Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB)

The Council of Europe Development Bank is an international financial institution with a social mandate. It finances public entities as well as MSMEs (via on lending through financial institutions).

Country / Region
Member Since
Location
48.856614, 2.3522219
Contact Person Name
Isabelle Brun
Contact Person Title
Technical Advisor
Contact Person Email
isabelle.brun@coebank.org
City/Town location
Paris, France
PipeDrive organization Id
589

European Investment Bank

The European Union's bank. It is owned by and represents the interests of the European Union Member States. It works closely with other EU institutions to implement EU policy. 

Country / Region
Member Since
Location
49.815273, 6.129583
Contact Person Name
Marchitto Barbara
Contact Person Email
b.marchitto@eib.org
City/Town location
Luxembourg
PipeDrive organization Id
377

Raiffeisen Bank International

Corporate and investment bank based in Austria. It operates in 14 markets in Central and Eastern Europe offering services such as leasing, asset management as well as mergers and acquisitions.

Country / Region
Member Since
Organization Type
Location
48.2081743, 16.3738189
Contact Person Name
Slavoljub Dordevic
Contact Person Title
Head Consumer & Small Business Banking
Contact Person Email
slavoljub.dordevic@rbinternational.com
City/Town location
Wien, Austria
PipeDrive organization Id
645