CEC to decide on card operations

Casa de Economii si Consemnatiuni (CEC), the Romanian Savings Bank, will next week open the bidding for companies wishing to supply equipment for its banking card infrastructure. “We got a large number of offers, though several consortia are likely to be formed out of them because we need packaged solutions to cover every requirement for our card operations, not just for cash machines and point-of-sale transactions,” said CEC president Enache Jiru. The Finance Ministry, which is the sole shareholder in CEC, recently endorsed the spending and revenue budget for 2005, which includes allocations for its retail development programme, with cards being the main component this year. CEC has the largest network of branches in Romania at about 1,400 and may also become the owner of the country’s largest network of cash dispensers, though this would involve considerable investment. The implementation of electronic payment systems will begin with debit cards that will have overdraft facilities with limits set at the equivalent of up to three salaries. At least 50 cash dispensers will be installed during this phase, with the process scheduled for completion within one year, before the bank’s privatisation. ZF