BCR: Best time for change is when business is flourishing

BCR, the largest bank on the market, has entered “a programme of essential and fundamental changes,” which cover strategy, structures and organisation, operational systems and institutional culture, Nicolae Danila, the bankes chief executive announced yesterday.
“BCRes success today is not necessarily guaranteed to continue over the following years. The best time for change, for repositioning, is when business is flourishing,” Danila stated.
The programme for integration into the Erste group and to develop the operations has a budget of approximately 200 million euros, of which some 150 million euros should be spent this year. This figure accounts for both integration costs and investment expenses. Part of the investment should go to support territorial network expansion from 478 branches to about 700 by 2009.
Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR) aims to boost profit by 62% and assets by 31% in 2007, compared with the 2006 figures, the bankes chief executive Nicolae Danila told a news conference yesterday.
He specified the results were estimated in line with the Romanian accounting standards.
The biggest bank in Romania, controlled by the Erste group, made a net profit of almost 830 million RON (some 240 million euros), bank sources told Mediafax in January.
“We will continue to develop over the upcoming period. We are considering a 31% increase in assets and a 62% increase in the net profit for 2007,” Danila said during the presentation of the bankes integration and development plan.
BCR had total assets worth 45.08 billion RON (13.3 billion euros) at the end of last year, according to the National Bank of Romania data. The bankes profit should therefore increase to 1.33 billion RON and the assets to some 59 billion RON (more than 17 billion euros). BCR would disburse dividends to its shareholders account for 40% of the net profit made last year, Danila added.
Compared with the profit announced by the quoted sources, dividends should reach about 330 million RON. The programme includes more than 40 separate projects, with a total budget put at some 200 million euros.
In addition, the bank also wants to expand the front office and its distribution capacity through alternative channels, including ATM and self-banking. “The integration and development programme targets all the business sectors of BCR; from corporate, retail and risk management, reporting and controlling, including Basel II, to operations and IT. The best time to act is when the bank is enjoying success,” Danila stated.
Employees of BCR and Erste Bank, the majority shareholder of the Romanian lender, will carry out the projects in the programme jointly. 550 people will be involved in the projects, with approximately 100 of them being part of the Austrian group.
The 40 projects are to be completed gradually from 2007 through to the middle of next year, Danila explained.
BCRes operational model will be built on three pillars connected to the regional business of the bank – corporate, retail-operations and support functions.