Banca Transilvania, 4m-euro profit in Q2

Banca Transilvania, the only Romanian privately-held lending institution in top ten, in the second quarter generated net income worth 17.2m RON (around 4m euros), up 71% from a year ago, but only 1.2m RON above the Q1, 2010 gain. In H1, the bank derived net income worth 33.2m RON (almost 8m euros), three times bigger than in the first half of last year. The half-year net income accounts for less than 10% in the operating figure, which climbed to 390m RON, by 68% from H1, 2009, but was strongly eroded by bad loan provision expenses, which climbed by 49%, to 330m RON. The provision volume thus topped 1bn RON (over 260m euros), against a loan volume of 13m RON (almost 3.2bn euros). Though foreign currency lending accounts for just 38.3% in the total portfolio, Banca Transilvania quotes RON decline against the euro as a cause behind the increase of loans with late payments of above 90 days. "We've focused on finding solutions matching clients' demands, such as loan restructuring or cheaper loans, the launch of a platform dedicated to people applying for European funds, as well as of new products. Moreover, we've come up with commercial lending campaigns and campaigns to refinance loans from other banks, to attract new clients, which were welcomed," comments Robert Rekkers, the general manager of Banca Transilvania.