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Financial & Banking
Balance of payments and external debt – July 2018
Monday, September 17, 2018
In January - July 2018p, the balance-of-payments current account posted a deficit of EUR 4,811 million, compared with EUR 4,162 million in January – July 2017; the deficit on trade in goods widened by EUR 999 million, the surplus on services income narrowed by EUR 255 million, the deficit of the primary income balance contracted by EUR 820 million, and the surplus of the secondary income balance decreased by EUR 215 million, data from National Bank of Romania ...
Annual inflation rate goes up to 5.1 pct in August
Monday, September 17, 2018
The annual inflation rate increased in August to 5.1 pct, from 4.56 pct in July, when the prices of non-food goods rose by 6.78 pct compared to the same month last year, the food products by 4.15 pct and services by 2.61 pct, according to data released on Tuesday by the National Institute of Statistics (INS).Inflation continued its upward trend in August after just one month in which there was a slight decrease.This year, the highest annual inflation ...
Assets of optional pension schemes at 1.92 bln lei as of July 31
Monday, September 17, 2018
Assets held by optional pension schemes amounted at roughly 1.92 bln lei as of July 31, 2018, up 12.25 percent YoY, the Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF) announced.Government securities account for the highest share, with 1.136 bln lei (59.13 pct), followed by shares with 395.477 mln lei (20.58 pct). Corporate bonds are third at 123.13 mln lei, or 6.41 pct of the total assets.Total assets under pension Pillar III amounted to 1.92 bln as of July 31, ...
Piraeus Bank Romania to become First Bank
Monday, September 17, 2018
Piraeus Bank Romania will become First Bank, according to a decision of the bank's Board of Directors, that met on September 12, reads a press release sent by the bank. According to the document, the rebranding process will kick off at the end of 2018 and will continue in the following months. The transition to the new brand will be gradually visible throughout the entire process. The bank's activity will carry on as usual. All contractual commitments ...
Bancpost ceases to exist on December 31
Monday, September 17, 2018
The date of the merger through which Banca Transilvania, the largest banking group in Romania, has taken over Bancpost, has been settled for December 31, 2018, on condition that the National Bank of Romania (BNR) gives its consent. „On this date, Bancpost ceases to exist, it will be dissolved without winding-up and its entire patrimony will be taken over by Banca Transilvania,” reads the merger draft of the two ...
BVB managed to stay in the positive territory after 8 months
Monday, September 17, 2018
Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) managed to stay in the positive zone at the end of the first eight months despite external turmoil, which sent several markets in negative territory amid growing international uncertainty. Global indices provider Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) reveal world markets plummeted abruptly from the beginning of this year. MSCI indices fell sharply, in USD-equivalent, as Emerging Markets went down by 8 percent and Frontier Markets by 15 ...
BNR sanctions Patria Bank for software malfunction
Monday, September 17, 2018
The National Bank of Romania (BNR) has sanctioned Patria Bank, controlled by EEAF Financial Services BV, with written warning for malfunction of core-banking software ab-Solut, BNR data show. The sanction, the second in this year, was issued on July 20, 2018, for “the inappropriate functioning of the ab-SOLUT information system to keep the value of the previous period for the required level of minimum reserve requirements on ...
Gov't to cut VAT for hotels, restaurants & entertainment from 9 pct to 5 pct
Monday, September 17, 2018
The Romanian government plans to cut next week the value-added tax (VAT) for hotels, restaurants, catering and entertainment from 9 percent to 5 percent and to remove royalties for geothermal water through emergency ordinance, according to the Finance Ministry Eugern Orlando Teodorovici, cited by Economica.net. The measure aims to support Romania’s tourism industry. Last week, the Tourism Ministry announced that it ...
Study: One in ten Romanians have a cryptocoin and 33 percent want to buy one
Monday, September 17, 2018
Romanians are very familiar with the term cryptocoins, with one in 10 Romanians holding cryptocoins, and 33 percent of them want to buy, according to a study by a global platform that allows cryptomonas trading, http://business-review.eu informs. The study was conducted most probably through the internet, so the respondents are those who have an internet connection. According to a recent research conducted ...
Survey: Half or urban residents don’t want to take a credit, while 10 pct. wish to borrow for a house
Monday, September 17, 2018
Half of urban residents do not want to contract a credit, while 10 percent want to borrow, the main reason being to buy a house, according to a survey by IRSOP Market Research & Consulting and presented by Petre Datculescu, company director, http://business-review.eu reports. “There are several reasons for this: the first reason, perhaps not in this order, is for those who do not have the resources to ...
Ionut Dumitru: Estimated incomes from VAT excessively optimistic
Monday, September 10, 2018
Estimated incomes from VAT are excessively optimistic in budget rectification and supposes a 20% increase of VAT incomes in the time left until the end of the year, said Ionut Dumitru, the president of the Fiscal Council, present at the conference “2018 Investor Days” organized by Property Fund on Thursday. “This rectification, as we said at the Fiscal Council, brings a few major changes for incomes and expenses. In its first variant, ...
FinMin Teodorovici: Romania further aspires to emerging market status for BVB
Monday, September 10, 2018
Romania's ambitions for the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) stay high, as it seeks to acquire the status of emerging market, the Ministry of Finance said on Saturday in a release.Minister of Public Finance Eugen Teodorovici attended on Friday in Vienna the informal meeting of the EU Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN), the EUROGROUP meeting in extended format and the EUROFI Financial Forum organized in association with the Austrian Presidency of the EU ...
Mandatory private pension funds stockpile assets worth almost 45 billion lei, up 20pct, in July
Monday, September 10, 2018
The mandatory private pension funds had stockpiled assets worth 44.64 billion lei, on 31 July 2018, up 20 pct as compared to the same month of the previous year, according to data from the Financial Supervision Authority (ASF).The state securities hold the largest share in the assets, of 27.13 billion lei, 60.78 pct respectively. Shares rank second, with 8.11 billion lei (18.17 pct). Bank deposits ranked third in this respect, with 4.71 billion lei, or 10.56 pct ...
FinMin participated at te ECOFIN meeting
Monday, September 10, 2018
Romania has argued in favour of ensuring the geographical balance in the allocation of funds within the InvestEU programme and underscored the need for simplification and streamlining in view of the members states' accessing this programme, a press release of the Public Finance Ministry sent on Sunday informs. According to the cited source, the relevant minister, Eugen Teodorovici participated on Saturday in Vienna, in the second session of the informal ...
Romanian bank put up for sale once again
Monday, September 10, 2018
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, ...
Two top insurers in Romania see 9% increase in revenues in first half
Monday, September 10, 2018
Groupama Asigurari, the local subsidiary of French insurance group Groupama, and Omniasig VIG, one of the main local companies of Austrian group Vienna Insurance Group (VIG), recorded 9% increases in gross premiums in the first half of this year. Groupama reached gross premiums underwritten worth RON 504 million (EUR 108 million), up 9.3% over the first six months of 2017. The company’s life insurance business went up by 20%, to RON 21 million ...
WB: Connections Beyond Trade Crucial for Economic Growth in Europe and Central Asia
Monday, September 10, 2018
International connectivity through trade, investment, migration, communications, and transport is critical to economic development in Europe and Central Asia. These connections work together to help firms become more productive through knowledge and technology transfers, says a new World Bank ...
Analysis: Greeks are leaving Romania’s banking system, pushed away by crisis at home
Monday, September 10, 2018
A decade ago, the Greek banks were controlling 17 percent of Romanian banking assets, and their business here was flourishing. Now, only two banks are still under Greek control, but one of them will soon be transfer into other hands, http://business-review.eu reads. In 2008, five Greek banks were operating in Romania: Alpha Bank, Bancpost (owned by Eurobank), Piraeus Bank, Banca Romaneasca – National Bank ...
OMNIASIG posts over 9% increase of the gross written premiums in the first half of the year
Monday, September 10, 2018
OMNIASIG Vienna Insurance Group announced the registered gross written premiums for the first half of 2018 had increased with more than 9% compared to the same period of 2017, thus consolidating its position on the Romanian general insurance market, a press release informs quoted by romaniajournal.ro.. In the first semester of this year, the company registered gross written premiums of over RON 558 million, a value which is more than 9% higher, ...
Sphera and Purcari join BET index which now includes 15 companies
Monday, September 10, 2018
Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) increases from 13 to 15 the number of ...