Erste Group, the majority shareholder of BCR, is launching apublic offering of shares today whereby it intends to raise atleast 1.6 billion euros to increase its capital, given that BCR,too, might need additional capital to offset the deterioration ofthe financial results.
BCR, the biggest bank on the market posted 22 million euros in netprofit in the third quarter for the entire financial group, oversix times lower than in the same time in 2008, which reveals theimpact of the financial crisis that is starting to becomeincreasingly more visible in the balance sheets of banks.
Nine months into the year, BCR posted 166 million euros in netincome, half of what it was a year ago, when the bank had collectedmore than 60 million euros for its stake in Asiban.
Erste posted a 4.8 million euro net loss from the retail and SMEsegment in Romania in the third quarter, compared with a net profitof almost 77 million euros in the same time in 2008, because of theincrease in provisions for non-performing loans accumulatedespecially on the SME segment.
To consolidate its capital, Erste will sell new shares at a maximumprice of 32 euros by November 17, which means it could get no morethan 1.9 billion euros from the market. Individual investors inRomania that buy through BCR will get preferential allocationdepending on the number of shares left after subscription rightshave been exercised.
"We do not believe this crisis is over, although the peak has beenreached most likely. We have hard times ahead of us and it remainsto be seen whether we feel a dramatic decline in risk cost. We hopeit will come, but we don't know when," said Andreas Treichl, CEO ofErste. He added the money raised from the market would not be usedto repay the 1.2 billion euro aid Erste got from the AustrianGovernment but to further consolidate the capital.
The Erste Foundation, the main shareholder of the Austrian group,will not participate in the capital increase of the bank, as italready has one billion euros in debt. Spanish La Caixa group,which already owns 5.1% in Erste will subscribe in its place. As aresult, the stake of the Foundation will go down from 31% to some26.5%, while La Caixa's stake will go up to 10% and may evenincrease to 20% if Erste agrees.
Pentru alte știri, analize, articole și informații din business în timp real urmărește Ziarul Financiar pe WhatsApp Channels
