Piraeus: We rely on cross-selling and effectiveness

In order to sustain its growth, Greek-held Piraeus Bank relies on cross selling, which includes sales between its various subsidiaries. “Last year, marketing and innovative products were the growth drivers. Now, we intend to rely more on cross-selling, and also maximise the effectiveness of our network,” said Catalin Parvu, General Manager of Retail Banking and Operations at Piraeus Bank, in an interview with ZF. The bank currently operates a 10-subsidiary network, after it almost doubled its territorial presence last year. Piraeus will also continue to expand its network this year, however, Parvu says it will probably not exceed 200 branches, but that the bank would also look at the market trend before making a final decision to this effect. Nine months into 2007, Piraeus had granted loans worth 1.77 billion euros, up 175% against the beginning of the year. The overall funding granted, which includes the bank’s subsidiaries (a leasing company, a financial investment company and an insurance brokerage company), amounted to 1.82 billion euros.