Banks still lending money to pharmaceutical market

Fildas group of firms, controlled by Anca Vlad, is set to refinance, in October, a 71m-euro loan contracted three years ago from a syndicate made up of ten banks, with the documents to be signed in the following period.
"Conditions are not different (compared with 2007 i.e.). We've benefitted from a smooth restructuring. The major issue in syndication is harmonising ten points of view," Anca Vlad told Ziarul Financiar.
There is no information available about who will lend to the company this year. Refinancing is operated over a five-year period and its value is lower than the 80m-euro contracted in 2007 as the difference has already been paid.
"This year, Fildas' strategy includes growth of its own retail operations, namely through Catena pharmacies as opposed to wholesale because of the non-payment risk. There have been a lot of bankruptcies and insolvency cases lately. We're focusing on selling through safe channels," said Mihai Drumea, financial manager of Fildas.
In a press conference yesterday, Anca Vlad announced Catena pharmacies have cut prices of around 700 products by 15-22%, a campaign due to unfold over a 4-month period.