Raiffeisenbank
Although Raiffeisenbank took second place in Romania, it wins the award for Serbia & Montenegro, having established itself as the country’s leading foreign bank just two years after its arrival.
Since opening its doors for business in March 2001, the bank has surpassed its foreign rivals, including France’s Société Générale and Germany’s HVB, in both corporate and retail banking. Its total assets have climbed to E281.17m, twice those of second-ranked Société Générale.
Raiffeisenbank’s other noteworthy achievements include acting as the agent bank for the local government’s privatisation agency and channelling 52% of the E475m that has been invested in Serbia & Montenegro so far.
Its success is also reflected in its performance. Following a loss related to start-up costs in 2001, the bank turned a profit in 2002. It also brought down its cost-to-income ratio to 76.16% from 230.63%.
The bank has a number of technological and service-related achievements to its credit. It was the first foreign bank to expand the types of loans it offers to consumers and to offer an account overdraft facility. It is also the only one that offers cross-border transactions.
Raiffeisenbank CEO Budimir Kostic said: “In only two years of operation, Raiffeisenbank was able to become the largest, most dynamic and above all most attractive foreign-owned bank [in Serbia & Montenegro]. In 2002, it channelled more than 50% of foreign direct investments into Serbia and today it is one of the largest creditors in corporate and retail banking, offering a wide range of products in both segments.”
