Foreigners' deposits climb to 6.18bn euros

Medium and long-term deposits of non-residents, which reflect funding attracted by Romanian banks from their foreign shareholders, climbed to a new all-time high of 6.18 billion euros in August. The volume of these deposits is almost double against the level recorded at the beginning of the year, of 3.2 billion euros, according to data from the NBR (National Bank of Romania). Analysts say that local banks use complicated techniques to attract funding from their shareholders, in order to avoid the cost of minimum reserve requirements imposed by the NBR. The fast rise of these deposits, which started in spring, comes in a context where banks find it increasingly hard to access funding, both locally and internationally.