Bankers respond to PM: We want to give loans, but have no one to give them to

Bankers fear they may not be able to place all the liquidity they will have left, after foreign shareholders have strengthened their commitment to preserve funding for Romanian subsidiaries on Tuesday, but demand for loans on the Romanian market is still weak. "Banks are keeping their exposure to Romania, but this is a matter of having opportunities - where to place the money," said Steven van Groningen, president and CEO of Raiffeisen Bank, one of the largest banks in Romania, at the South-East European Financial Forum. Since last autumn, banks have drastically reduced the volume of credits granted to clients in the private sector, with lent sums being smaller than those reimbursed by clients in the form of instalment payments. The rest was placed either in government bonds, or was used for repaying debts to shareholders. Prime Minister Emil Boc said yesterday that the essential issue for restarting the economy was the resumption of lending. "The major issue of the economy, which affects both the business environment and job preservation is the lack of lending. Credit is the lifeblood of the economy. Resumption of lending is for the Government and for the National Bank, I hope, a major priority," Boc said. Dominic Bruynseels, head of the BCR, the largest bank in the Romanian system, says demand for loans on the retail segment has fallen dramatically amid revised expectations of salary increases, with companies now undergoing a period of adjustment. "No emerging economy can grow on its own. It needs money from abroad. Romania has benefited from large amounts, and huge sums continue to be available for investments. The money is on the table, entrepreneurs with viable projects need to come and get it," Bruynseels says.