How competitive are Romania's banking and insurance sectors?

The local mandatory car insurance market (RCA) has oligopolistic features, as seven companies control 90% of the underwritings, according to the Competition Council. A market becomes oligopolistic when it’s controlled by a few players that can reach anticompetitive practices, which are damaging for the free formation of prices. Meanwhile, the banking system in Romania has a low-to-medium concentration degree, which indicates a high degree of competition, according to the Competition Council. However, the high level of indebtedness leads to a reduced degree of mobility for customers. The first ten banks have a market share between 77.8% and 78.4%. In the last four years, the difference between the interest rates on loans and deposits has decreased. editor@romania-insider.com