BCR is receiving calls from real estate agents from all over Europe who want to buy some of its properties every day, but it is not rushing to sell, states Andreas Treichl, CEO with Erste Bank, the majority shareholder in BCR.
"We will have a lot of empty office space left in the following months and years. We own some buildings, we will reduce the space used in current subsidiaries and there will be a lot of space available, but it's much too early for me to comment on what and how we will do with it. I don't believe this would be wise on my part," Treichl told an analyst and investor conference.
He says he does know in fact when BCR is to start selling some of this space, but is not willing to give any details.
At present, BCR's territorial network includes 478 subsidiaries and offices covering most cities with a population of over 10,000 inhabitants.
At the end of 2005, when Austria's Erste won the race for BCR privatisation, the network included 370 branches. Starting 2005, the bank has begun to concentrate its expansion on a smaller space format, destined to retail services.
This is the format that will be also used as part of the scheduled expansion that is to take the network to around 700 branches in 2009, with Erste wanting the bank to use rented space from now on.
According to real estate experts, BCR has the most valuable headquarters and property network of all the banks present on the market. As a matter of fact, real estate assets had a significant part in the bank's assessment by the investors who were interested in its privatisation.
The value is conferred both by the number and size of properties, as well as by their position, which secure a good price per square metre of property.
In line with market information, BCR owns around 250 properties in various cities of the country, with their value put at some 300 million euros against late 2005 prices.
Meanwhile, prices have gone up further and analysts expect this trend to maintain, especially in the central urban centres where most BCR subsidiaries are located, but not only there.
In recent years, the bank has embraced a strategy meant to raise the profitability of its real estate portfolio. Thus, part of properties were sold and the best of the unused locations were rented.
As the back office function centralisation process is finalised, there will be a lot of vacant spaces and BCR will thus be able to sustain its investment programme for modernisation by office space rentals or sales inclusively.
Part of emptied spaces can be used by companies within BCR group, insurance, asset management, leasing or the future housing bank.
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