Cypriot-held Marfin Popular Bank, a financial group with 42billion-euro assets and boasting one of the best performances interms of capitalisation among players in the region, will seeorganic growth in Romania, having failed to find any acquisitionopportunities.
"We are looking at acquisition opportunities, but we have not foundanything interesting," Thimios Bouloutas, 49, CEO of the MarfinPopular Bank group told ZF, after a visit to Bucharest where he hadmeetings with the Romanian Prime Minister and central bank governorMugur Isărescu.
Given that the alternative of expanding through acquisitions is notviable, at least for now, Bouloutas has set out new targets for theBucharest bank.
"Organic growth will be basic for us. We have started a networkexpansion campaign, there will be five new branches in a firststage, and 40 new branches by December 2012. Assets will reach onebillion euros," Bouloutas announces.
The bank had 27 branches and around 600 million euros in assets atthe end of 2008. Amid the financial crisis that started in 2008,the bank suspended its expansion, and the problems recorded by theleasing company because of frauds prompted Marfin to post negativeresults in Romania in the past two years. In 2010 the bank reporteda 7.6 million-euro profit, but the data published by the groupreveal a consolidated loss (which also reflects the result of theleasing company) of 3 million euros, half the loss recorded in2009. The bank's assets amounted to slightly more than 600 millioneuros at the end of last year.
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