Bulgarian Postbank
 | |
| Company type | Commercial Bank |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial services |
| Founded | 1991 |
| Headquarters | Sofia, Bulgaria |
Key people | George Provopoulos (Chairman) |
| Products | Retail banking Corporate banking Factoring Investment banking Asset management Loans |
 €49.84 mln (2015)[1] | |
| Total assets | €2944.87 mln (2015)[1] |
| Total equity | €470.42 million (2015)[1] |
| Owner | ERB New Europe Holding B.V. (54.27%) Eurobank Ergasias (34.56%) |
Number of employees | 3,000 (FTE, Q2 2015) |
| Parent | Eurobank Ergasias |
| Website | www.postbank.bg |
Postbank (Bulgarian: Пощенска Банка, Poshtenska Banka), legally known as Eurobank Bulgaria AD (former legal name Eurobank EFG Bulgaria AD, date of change 11/1/2013), is a universal bank in Bulgaria.
It is the third largest depository institution in the country, as well as the second largest mortgage lender,[2] and the largest credit card issuer. The bank commands a market share of nearly 10%, a workforce of 3,000 employees and with over 200 locations has one of the most extensive branch networks in the country. Postbank is a member of Eurobank Ergasias Group. Eurobank Ergasias is a European banking organization with total assets of €74 billion (as of Dec 2014), offering universal banking across eight countries. Eurobank has a presence in Greece and holds lead positions in Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia, offers Wealth Management services in Cyprus, Luxembourg and London, and is also present in Ukraine. Having a banking history of over 20 years, Postbank ranks among the leading universal banks in Bulgaria. Total assets of the bank reached BGN 5,637 billion as of 31 December 2012. In June 2012 the bank retained its long-term credit rating of BBB and a short-term rating of A-2 with a stable outlook from the Bulgarian Credit Rating Agency (BCRA).[3]
History
Bulgarian Postbank was founded on April 2, 1991 as the postal savings system of Bulgarian Posts. In the years that followed, the bank experienced substantial growth and expansion. It is one of the few Bulgarian banks that managed to survive the banking crisis in Bulgaria in 1996-1997.[citation needed]
On November 9, 1998, 78.23% of Postbank’s capital was acquired by ALICO/CEH Balkan Holdings Ltd., a subsidiary of Eurobank Ergasias. In the following years, Eurobank Ergasias control grew to more than 90% of Postbank’s equity capital.[citation needed]
On December 21, 2006, Eurobank EFG acquired majority ownership of the Bulgarian DZI Bank, which was merged into Postbank in the third quarter of 2007 with the operational merger completing by the end of the year.[4]
On August 29, 2011, Eurobank Ergasias and Alpha Bank announced that they have reached agreement on a merger. Alpha Bank has presence in Bulgaria since 1995 with its Sofia Branch having more than 120 offices around the country. The Alpha Bank Branch was expected to merge into Postbank operationally in 2012,[5] but in January 2012, the merger was suspended until private sector bond writedowns, required of Greek banks as part of the EU/International Monetary Fund third rescue package to resolve the Greek government debt crisis, are finalized.[2] The merger went through on 17 July 2015.
Following its merger with DZI Bank in 2007, the bank changed its legal name to "Eurobank Bulgaria AD", but continued doing business as the Bulgarian Postbank. Despite the legal name change, Postbank remains an autonomous Bulgarian bank and is fully self-funded via the local and international market.[3] Apart from its significant deposit base, for purposes of small business and medium-sized loan financing, Postbank can draw on institutional credit lines from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD),[6] the Bulgarian Development Bank,[7] and the International Finance Corporation (IFC).[8]
Products and Services
Postbank provides retail, corporate banking and investment banking services in Bulgaria. The bank offers services to its local and international customers. In regards to the retail banking products, the bank traditionally holds strong positions in mortgage lending, consumer lending and cards, and deposit products.
Share Capital Structure
As of 31 December 2013[update], the total authorized number of ordinary shares of Eurobank Bulgaria AD was 452,752,652, with a nominal value of BGN 1 per share.[9]
- ERB New Europe Holding B.V. (formerly Cayne Management Group B.V.), Amsterdam, Netherlands – 54.27%
- Eurobank Ergasias S.A., Athens, Greece - 34.56%
- CEH Balkan Holdings Ltd. (formerly ALICO/CEH Balkan Holdings Ltd.), Nicosia, Cyprus – 11.16%
- Minority shareholders – 0.01%
Key people
In April 2011, Postbank introduced a tiered board structure, which included a Management Board and a Supervisory Board.[10]
Management Board
- Petia Dimitrova - Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
- Dimitar Shoumarov - Chief Financial Director and Executive Director
- Iordan Souvandjiev - Chief Risk Officer
Supervisory Board
- Theodoros Karakasis - Chairman of the Board
- Stavros Ioannou - Deputy Chairman of the Board
- Evangelos Kavvalos - Member
- Nikolaos Aliprantis - Member
- Christos Adam - Member
Procurator
New Head Office
The new head office with total area of 12,500 m2, was inaugurated in June 2012.
Subsidiaries
As of June 2013, the affiliates of Postbank which operate on the Bulgarian market include:
- ERB Leasing EAD (former name EFG Leasing EAD, date of change 01/2/2013) - leasing company
- ERB Auto Leasing EOOD - car leasing company
- ERB Property Services Sofia AD (former name EFG Property Services Sofia AD, date of change 25/3/2013) - a real estate operation, property valuation, and property management company
- IMO Property Investment Sofia EAD - a real estate operation and investment development company
- IMO Central Office EAD - - a real estate operation company
Key figures[11]
- Clients: Over 1.5 million
- Client deposits: €2.15 billion (end 2012)
- Client loans: €2 billion (end 2012)
- Branches: 200 (Q2 2015)
References
- ^ a b c Bank Profile: Eurobank Bulgaria AD
- ^ a b "Greek bank merger suspended over private sector bond write-downs - January 2012". Sofia Echo. Retrieved 1 March 2012.
- ^ a b "Greece's Eurobank Wants Bulgaria Unit Self-Funded by 2012 - June 2011". Novinite.com. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- ^ "Greek Businessmen to Acquire DZI Bank - September 2006". Standartnews. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- ^ "Alpha Bank, Eurobank EFG Merger Creates Biggest Bank in Greece, 3rd Biggest in Bulgaria - August 2010". Novinite.com. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- ^ "EBRD Injects E250 M in Bulgaria - May 2011". Standartnews. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
- ^ "Bulgaria's Postbank gets 7.25M euro loan from Bulgarian Development Bank - October 2011". Sofia Echo. Retrieved 28 February 2012.
- ^ "Postbank to support business with USD 20 million - March 2012". Focus Information Agency. Retrieved 2 March 2012.
- ^ "POSTBANK FINANCIAL AND SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2013 We don't give promises. We create strategies to fulfill them POSTBANK FINANCIAL AND SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2013" (PDF). Retrieved 2 March 2015.
- ^ "Bulgaria's Postbank overhauls management structure". Sofia Echo. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- ^ Postbank official website
