Romstal triples real estate leasing business

The value of contracts closed by Romstal Leasing rose by 35% in the first half of this year, compared with the same time last year, reaching 87.6 million euros.
“The main factor behind this increase is the territorial expansion of the company, through its ten new branches (…). Instant leasing through SMS, as well as the promotional offer – a 6.75% interest rate – also contributed to the results witnessed in the first six months of the year,” said Ionut Chirila, the company’s marketing manager.
Funding for light and heavy commercial vehicles accounts for 43% of Romstal Leasing’s portfolio, whilst auto funding accounts for 38.5%.
Compared with the first half of last year, the company tripled the value of its real estate leasing contracts to 5.7 million euros. These contracts are primarily accounted for by residential projects. For the overall year, Romstal expects to witness a 10% growth rate on this segment.
In the second half of the year, the company intends to increase the maximum reimbursement periods for granted loans. In the case of auto leasing, the period will increase from 4 to 5 years, for commercial vehicles – from 5 to 7 years and for real estate leasing – from 8 to 20 years.
“The increase in the funding period will have the direct effect of reducing the value of leasing instalments, thus prompting a rise in demand,” explained company officials.
Romstal Leasing intends to open a further 5 branches by the end of the year, with the number of territorial branches expected to reach 32.
The Belgian financial group KBC acquired the company last year in a transaction worth around 70 million euros. This sum also included the acquisition of the insurance broker Ink Insurance Broker.
KBC Lease, the leasing division of the group, operates in 14 European countries, with over 1,500 employees.