Italian group UniCredit almost doubles profit in Romania

UniCredit Bank Romania, one of the top financial groups in Romania, posted a consolidated net profit of EUR 60.6 million in 2015, up by 87% compared to 2014, mainly on lower risk costs. UniCredit Bank Romania is a subsidiary of Italian financial group UniCredit, one of the biggest in Europe. The group, which includes UniCredit Bank Romania – one of the top five local banks, UniCredit Leasing – the biggest leasing company, and UniCredit Consumer Financing – which specializes in consumer loans, had net revenues of EUR 342 million in 2015, down by 1.2% compared to 2014. Its operational profit went down by 2.1%, to EUR 167 million. However, the drop in net risk costs associated with bad loans, was 32%, to EUR 91 million, which helped the group increase its bottom line. The group’s total assets went up by 6.7% in the 12 months ended on December 31, 2015, reaching EUR 6.8 billion. The total loan portfolio increased by 4.1%, to EUR 4.3 billion, outpacing the 3% growth in the local banking sector, as the bank focused on the corporate and SME market segments. The group’s deposits also went up by 11.5%, reaching EUR 4 billion at end-December 2015. The loans to deposits ratio improved, reaching 109%, according to the group’s financial statements. UniCredit plans to expand operations in Romania UniCredit buys out billionaire Ion Tiriac’s stake in Romanian subsidiary editor@romania-insider.com