Businessman Ilie Carabulea, who controls Banca Comerciala Carpatica (BCC), is thinking of attracting a partner that would control up to 30% of the shares of BCC.
"We are thinking of bringing a partner on board, which would hold 20-30% of the shares of Carpatica Bank. The prospective partner will need to have the necessary expertise, though" Ilie Carabulea, who controls 36.26% of the bank's share capital, told ZF.
In the past year, speculations as to a prospective takeover of Carpatica by a foreign financial group have increased, but, on each occasion, the bank's management denied the information, saying that "Romania needs banks with Romanian capital amid a troubled international environment."
Based in the city of Sibiu, Carpatica is one of the few privately-held banks with Romanian capital in the local banking system, which is over 80% dominated by foreign investors. At the beginning of the year, the Romanian Government decided to support banking institutions, which had the state as a majority shareholder by approving a 900 million-RON share capital increase for CECBank, and by allowing Eximbank to capitalise its 2008 profit, of around 70 million RON.
"The Government is not similarly accommodating when it comes to the needs of Romanian banks. Unlike CEC, we have not benefited from any state aid, and nobody has asked us whether we need support or not," said Carabulea, adding that the fact that international banks operating on the Romanian market have received funding from the governments of countries where they are headquartered is generating an imbalance affecting local banks with private capital.
Banca Comerciala Carpatica will not disburse dividends from its 2008 profit, with the entire profit worth 688,000 RON (187,000 euros) to be reinvested in boosting and consolidating the bank's operations.
"Over the last few years, Carpatica has significantly expanded its territorial network, to 240 branches. This growth needs to be financed in the future, as well, so we will not pay out dividends, and instead reinvest the whole 2008 profit into developing the bank," Ilie Carabulea said.
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