Austria's Raiffeisen Bank confirmed on March 28 that it would buy Garanti BBVA's ​Romanian business for EUR 591 million, its ‌first significant acquisition in recent years, according to Reuters. The takeover will bring Raiffeisen to fourth place in Romania by assets, after Banca Transilvania, BCR, and UniCredit – from its sixth place before the takeover, by surpassing BRD-SocGen and CEC.

The deal marks a turning point for Raiffeisen, which has long been under pressure to withdraw ​from Russia due to its invasion of ​Ukraine and the imposition of Western sanctions on ⁠Moscow, the news agency commented.

Raiffeisen's CEO Johann Strobl said his bank has a ​strong capital base and is pursuing both organic growth ​and acquisitions in its core markets.

"This transaction is a significant strategic step in one of the most attractive banking markets in ​Central and Eastern Europe, a country we know very ​well," he said in a statement.

Raiffeisen said the acquisition should make ‌it ⁠the third-largest bank in the Romanian banking market by total assets. But this apparently does not take into account UniCredit taking over Alpha Bank. At the end of 2025, Raiffeisen Romania’s assets were RON 88.6 billion compared to RON 114 billion assets held by UniCredit, while Garanti BBVA Romania’s assets were RON 15.9 billion at the end of 2025, unlikely to have surged above RON 25 billion (needed to propel Raiffeisen above UniCredit).

The transaction will be completed upon obtaining all regulatory approvals. The closing of the deal is expected for the fourth quarter of 2026, Raiffeisen said. It plans to integrate the business with ​its existing ​Romanian operations.

Istanbul-listed Garanti ⁠is a majority-owned unit of Spain's BBVA (BBVA.MC), opens new tab, which estimates the transaction will have ​a net positive impact of around 10 ​basis points ⁠on its CET1 ratio and EUR 112 million on the group's income statement.

iulian@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: press release)