ING: currency lending is being boosted

The policy embraced by the National Bank of Romania (NBR), which aims to attract cash from the money market at high interest rates, is boosting the lending in foreign currency and leads to fewer ROL credits, according to the representative of one of the largest foreign banks in Romania.

NBR representatives say they will not debate the monetary policy issue, but claim this is not true, anyway. “I have noticed that the euro and USD loans are being boosted, whereas the ROL credits are being put down,” said Misu Negritoiu, deputy general manager of ING Romania.

In January, NBR attracted average daily deposits worth some 61,000 billion ROL (1.5 billion euros), with interests revolving around 21-22%, which have not budged since last year even though the inflation rate projected for next year has dropped from 14% to 9%.

The interest rates offered by banks vary between 15% and 17%, so that the banking institutions merely gain from the rate gaps.

“I guess this level of the NBR intervention rates accounts for a macroeconomic stability anchor in the absence of a deep economic structural adjustment,” Negritoiu explained.

“NBR will not discuss the monetary policy with the commercial banks. I for one can tell you there is no intention from the part of NBR to boost loans in foreign currency, considering the reality. As a matter of fact, one simply has to consider the central bank’s intervention, whenever such a trend emerged,” said Adrian Vasilescu, communication advisor to the National Bank of Romania Governor.

ING on Tuesday released its 2003 results. “Last year was very important for us. Romania is among the three large Eastern countries we focus on, besides Russia and Poland,” said Dirk Serbruyns, ING Romania president. ING Bank’s total revenues amounted to 50.5 million euros last year, down 3.8% since 2002, because of the tax changes and the ROL’s steep depreciation against the single European currency.
sorin.pislaru@zf.ro