Romania currently has 193 companies active in debt recovery. These firms had a total turnover of some EUR 44 million last year, according to a KeysFin analysis.

Compared to five years ago, the number of debt recovery companies doubled. Most of them operate in Bucharest, a city where this business amounts to some EUR 38.6 million. The Moldova area, in eastern Romania, comes next, with a turnover of some EUR 3.3 million, followed by the North-West area, with some EUR 384,000.

During the economic boom, banks granted loans very easily, which individuals weren’t able to pay for later, as economic conditions worsened. Banks then sold the non-performing loans to debt recovery companies.

Banks managed to cover a great deal of these loans through the huge interest rate which they charged, according to KeysFin. However, customers found themselves in default, and the personal insolvency law came too late, said the KeysFin experts.

editor@romania-insider.com