Alpha Bank: Profit up, although macroeconomic problems loom large

Alpha Bank, the local branch of one of the largest financial groups in Greece, posted gross profit worth 37.9 million euros last year, up 15% on 2006. Last year, the bank registered a rapid increase on credits (136%), to 2.72 billion euros. “We performed better than expected in the second quarter of 2007, we capitalised on the bank’s growth and increased our volumes,” Sergiu Oprescu (photo), chief executive of Alpha Bank, told ZF. For 2007, Oprescu had expected a profit similar to the level derived in 2006, after Alpha conducted massive investments in its territorial network. The bank ended last year with 125 units, after it opened 55 agencies. “We expect to register a more significant profit increase in 2008. It would be premature to consider increases in terms of volume, given the macroeconomic imbalances that will affect the dynamics of non-government credit,” explained Oprescu. According to the Alpha official, the bank will continue to grow at a faster rate than the market, although the increase in nominal terms of non-government credit will be affected by economic imbalances. Last year, assets in the banking sector climbed 45% to 250.7 billion RON (around 70 billion euros). In September, Alpha ranked fourth in the banking sector, according to data from the NBR (National Bank of Romania), but lost ground in the last quarter and fell to seventh position.