Volksbank Romania’s shares, previously owned by Volksbank International, have recently been transferred to VBI Beteiligungs GmbH, an investment vehicle created especially for this. The bank’s participations have been transferred on October 21, once the new shareholder structure was registered in the Shareholders Registry.

VBI Beteiligungs GmbH has the same structure as Volksbank International. Osterreichische Volksbanken-Aktiengesellschaft (OVAG) is the main shareholder, with a 51 percent share, while DZ Bank AG / WGZ Bank AG in Germany and Banque Populaire Caisse d’Epargne (BPCE) in France own 24.5 percent each.

The new shareholder structure of Volksbank Romania is: VBI Beteiligungs GmbH with 99.34 percent, EM.RO Popolare with 0.33 percent and Banca Popolare di Vicenza that owns 0.33 percent.

In September this year, Russian Sberbank acquired Volksbank International, but the deal excluded Volksbank Romania.

Volksbank entered the Romanian market in 2000. Currently, Volksbank Romania is one of the largest banks on the local market with assets of EUR 4.7 billion and a network of 140 units.

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com