Nearly 95% of mortgage loans granted by bankers are in foreigncurrency - usually in euros and Swiss francs - which leaves clientsexposed to the foreign exchange risk, which Mişu Negriţoiu, head ofING Bank, called "a time bomb" at the beginning of the week. Hisposition is surprising considering that bankers have sought onnumerous occasions to persuade customers that the euro is the onlysolution for long-term credits, and the NBR has tolerated thisapproach.
The main argument that persuaded customers to take outforeign-currency loans, especially when it came to large amountsand long maturities, was the interest rate differential. The highinterest rates on RON-denominated loans made mortgage financing inRON almost prohibitive, argue bankers, who have, however, foundoutlets in euro-denominated loans and even in Swiss francs, at onepoint. Foreign-currency financing was much easier to obtain fromforeign shareholders or from international markets, at very lowprices, so even players that had not yet made a name for themselvesand that had relatively small networks compared with the old banks,were able to pursue market share on the retail loan segment.
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