Over 17,000 of local lender Volksbank Romania’s customers have agreed to talk with bank representatives about the conversion offer of their Swiss franc (CHF)-denominated loans into Romanian lei (RON) or euro. Some 11,000 of them have accepted the bank’s conditions.

Romanian lender Banca Transilvania completed Volksbank Romania’s acquisition in April, and immediately launched a conversion offer for Volksbank’s customers with loans in Swiss francs. The offer is valid until July 31, this year.

Over 96% of the customers that have accepted the conversion offer have chosen the RON as conversion currency. The offer provides a 22.5% discount for those who accept to convert their loans in Swiss francs into Romanian currency or euro, and reimburses customers the amounts paid as risk fee, by reducing their credit balance. The risk fee represented up to one-third of the clients’ monthly installments.

Thousands of Volksbank customers challenged the risk fee in court, and most of the court decisions were in their favor. The National Authority for Consumer Protection sued Volksbank Romania and requested the removal of the risk fee.

editor@romania-insider.com