Piraeus Bank, Greece’s largest lender by assets, plans to sell its Balkan subsidiaries, including the one in Romania, by 2020, reports Ekathimerini.com.

The sale is part of the new CEO Christos Megalou’s strategy to reduce foreign exposures and focus on the group’s domestic market. The plan includes the sale of its subsidiaries in Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Albania, and Ukraine.

Piraeus Bank Romania had assets of EUR 1.47 billion at the end of 2016. Its net loan portfolio reached EUR 725 million, accounting for a market share of 1.5%, and the deposits totaled EUR 963 million. The bank has over 100 units and over 1,300 employees.

Piraeus entered the local market in 2000. The Greek group made another attempt to sell the Romanian subsidiary in 2015, but negotiations with American investment fund JC Flowers failed.

The other Greek banks present in Romania, namely National Bank of Greece and EFG Eurobank also have their local subsidiaries on sale. NBG’s Banca Romaneasca is closer to a sale, with Hungarian OTP Bank and local Banca Transilvania competing for the takeover.

editor@romania-insider.com