Credex: 40,000 credit contracts worth around 20m euros in Q1

Credex Finantari (Credex Funding), the consumer finance company held by the Altex retailer and Raiffeisen Bank, signed over 40,000 credit contracts worth around 20 million euros in the first quarter of this year. “A comparison with the same period in 2006 cannot be made, as the implementation of Credex structures in Altex/Media Galaxy was only consolidated in the second half of 2006,” stated Dorina Badea, general manager of Credex Finantari. Currently, the company has over 114 offices operating in the entire Altex and Media Galaxy network. In 2006, Credex granted credits worth around 45 million euros for 95,000 clients. The non-bank financial institution has expanded its office network where Altex clients can pay their instalments, by supplementing its network with authorised offices of the Romanian Post Office, in addition to the Altex, Altex Megastore and Media Galaxy networks. Credex intends to expand its product portfolio this year, and to provide solutions for other merchants in the automotive, furniture and medical services field. In terms of the local market of consumer credits, Badea believes it is difficult to make an estimate, given that the majority of non-bank financial institutions in Romania have not yet reported their results to the NBR (The National Bank of Romania).