48m-euro profit for UniCredit Tiriac in H1

UniCredit Tiriac Bank, the local branch of the Italian financial giant UniCredit, posted net profit worth 177 million RON (48 million euros) in the first half of the year, up 17% against the first six months of 2007. “In the first half of this year, we set our priorities on various segments – we improved the strategic products in our portfolio and kicked off territorial expansion,” said Rasvan Radu, executive chairman of the bank. UniCredit Tiriac has expanded its territorial network by 36 branches since the beginning of the year and the cost/revenue ratio climbed from 47.5% to 49.4% due to higher expenses. The bank reached 177 units in June, but will continue to grow and reach 300 units by 2010. “Our incomes were higher last year due to rising sales,” said Stanislav Georgiev, chief financial officer of the bank. In the first half of the year, UniCredit Tiriac derived an operating income worth 530 million RON (145 million euros), up 23% in RON against the same time last year.