Raiffeisen contributes 2.8m euros to Ardaf's capital

Raiffeisen Zentralbank Austria contributed some 2.8 million euros (10 million RON) during the 31 million-euro (110 million RON) capital increase operation performed by insurer Ardaf Cluj, according to Radu Costea, receiver of the company. The subscription period ended yesterday.
The Insurance Supervision Commission placed Ardaf under receivership in mid July, as a result of the company’s liquidity ratio falling below 1, the limit set by the law.
After the first phase of the capital increase, when the shareholders had been entitled to exercise their pre-emption right, Raiffeisen was the only significant shareholder of the insurance company that subscribed proportionately with its stake, about 10%. During the second phase of the increase, Ardaf’s shareholders were allowed to subscribe as much as they wanted.
The final subscription results will be released in the next few days. Other significant shareholders of Ardaf are Tender SA (70.69%) and an offshore company, Clairmont Holding (12.71%).
“This money will help us make urgent payments,” says Ardaf’s receiver. The company has fallen seriously behind with its payments, with hundreds of claims filed pending settlement, Cocea explains.
He says that in the event the shareholders do not contribute enough cash to Ardaf’s capital, a new increase will be operated in October.
Tender SA, a company controlled by businessman Ovidiu Tender and the Clairmont Holding, registered in Cyprus, did not subscribe during the first phase of the capital increase. Tender therefore risks losing control over the insurance company.
Liviu Mandler, the representative of the Masterfield investment fund yesterday said the fund could come up with several tens of millions of euros for Ardaf’s capital.
At the same time as the 31 million-euro capital increase, the shareholders of the company are also carrying out an estimated 20 million-euro (71.2 million RON) increase that will be completed in September.