Septimiu Postelnicu, general manager of HVB Leasing says the expansion of the company's network and portfolio is becoming increasingly important on the leasing market with a view to the EU accession.
"It is already obvious that next year will be a time for the leasing market to adjust to all these new specific regulations imposed by the authorities and to the general rules involved by the accession to the European Union. The consolidation process of the leasing market will start in 2008," says Septimiu Postelnicu, general manager of HVB Leasing.
Leasing companies on the local market have, according to the regulations in place, just a few more months to reach a share capital of at least 200,000 euros.
HVB Leasing closed contracts worth 98 million euros in the first half of the year, a 58% increase against the corresponding period of last year. The H1 increase is due, according to Postelnicu, to the opening of new offices in important cities in the country.
"The presence of HVB Leasing in the country has been consolidated by three branches: Pitesti, Craiova and Bacau," says Postelnicu. He bets on the same expansion strategy for the second part of the year, as well.
"Our most ambitious development plans actually involve our products. We are preparing new service and product packages for next year," says Postelnicu.
Last year, the company concluded contracts worth 136.2 million euros, over 70% more than in the previous year, being one of the top ten companies in terms of the value of contracts.
HVB Leasing aims at contracts worth 160 million euros this year, an approximately 20% increase from 2005, according to company officials. Moreover, the leasing company is involved in a consolidation process together with Unicredit Leasing, following the international merger between HVB Bank and UniCredit.
The portfolios and competences of the two companies are complementary, as HVB Leasing is very well positioned on the segment of real estate and car leasing, while UniCredit Leasing is specialised particularly in industrial equipment.
The leasing market has been one of the most dynamic economic sectors in the last few years. Worth 2.2 billion euros, the leasing market increased 2.5 times in the past four years.
The growth was mainly related to the car market, which accounted for approximately 90% of the total value of contracts last year.
However, the leasing market could reach a value of up to 5 billion euros in the next three-five years, but this only if, in addition to the car segment, the real estate and equipment sectors also see a robust growth.
Pentru alte știri, analize, articole și informații din business în timp real urmărește Ziarul Financiar pe WhatsApp Channels
