Romanian bank put up for sale once again

Greek group National Bank of Greece (NBG) has put up for sale its Romanian subsidiary Banca Romaneasca once again after the failed transaction with Hungarian group OTP. The Credit Suisse office in London is in charge of this process. Three investors that are present on the local market have already expressed their interest for the lender, according to market sources, cited by local Ziarul Financiar. The three investors are U.S. fund J.C. Flowers, which recently bought Piraeus Bank Romania, Patria Bank, which is controlled by investment fund Axxess Capital, and the Greek Verdinogiannis family, who recently bought Marfin Bank Romania. All three investors aim to increase their market share on the local market. NBG wants to reach a deal by the end of this year. Non-binding offers can be submitted by September 24. NBG reached a deal with Hungarian group OTP for the sale of Banca Romaneasca in 2017, but Romania’s National Bank (BNR) opposed the deal. Banca Romaneasca had assets of EUR 1.3 billion and a market share of 1.46% at the end of 2017. editor@romania-insider.com