Eurobank plans 170m-euro investments

EFG Eurobank, the majority shareholder of Bancpost, targets investments worth some 170 million euros in Romania this year, with one of its goals being to sustain the expansion of the network to 210 branches, according to the results presented recently in Athens. According to the targets set, the volume of credits should reach 1.2 billion euros at the end of the year, which would mean a 63% increase against last year. In the first half of this year, Bancpost contributed 3.4 million euros to the net profit of the group in the region, 3 million euros less than its Bulgarian subsidiary. According to estimates based on May data, Bancpost held a 7.3% share in the market of credits for individuals, against the 9.6% share of Bulgarian subsidiary. In terms of assets, Bancpost stayed the eighth biggest bank on the market halfway through the year, although it saw an over 11% growth in the second quarter, to a 4.2% market share. According to the data published by EFG Eurobank, the volume of credits granted by Bancpost rose by 211 million euros in the second quarter, against a 115 million-euro growth in the first three months of the year, reaching a total 1.16 billion euros after the first six months of the year.