Hope you’ve got your headphones ready! 🎧 Today on BT Talks, Banca Transilvania’s podcast, we’re talking about the courage to face challenges, and joining Andi Moisescu is 🥁... Ömer Tetik, Banca Transilvania’s CEO.

Ömer was born in Hamburg and grew up in Izmir. His first language was German, and he learned Turkish well at the age of five, when his family moved to Turkey. He is Romanian and has held a Romanian ID card since 2009, having worked in Romania since 2000. Since 2013 he has been Banca Transilvania’s Chief Executive Officer and is among the most admired CEOs in Romania (2019, Business Magazin).

In this episode we learn that he was a “geek” at university and has always liked a challenge. We think it’s a very interesting episode, but we won’t tell you more — we’ll let you discover it yourself.

"You can easily put your strengths to work. Managing challenges well — that’s what makes the difference."

On a career in banking

Ömer started his career at a time when banking was in full development and becoming increasingly technology-driven. “Building something from scratch is more difficult, but the impact is much greater. There’s personal satisfaction, too. You can see your contribution much more clearly; you can shape what you do through your own choices and leave a mark.”

The BT story

BT’s founders thought like entrepreneurs from the very beginning. “When you have a parent bank behind you that has been doing things the same way for a long time, you tend to adopt and borrow ways of doing things. At BT we had to develop our DNA on our own.”

For a bank to function, it needs to stay in touch with reality. “At BT, we depend a lot on the bank’s network. The BT network — our army — is, in fact, our contact with reality.”

BT’s relationship with SMEs

In SMEs and microfinance, BT is entrepreneurs’ first choice. “If you consider that 60-70% of employees in the economy work for SMEs, or that nearly 70% of the country’s GDP is produced by SMEs, we are in fact working for the largest holding in Romania. We don’t see them as small businesses; they are important businesses for us. We’ve grown together.”

Where banking is headed

The pandemic has brought changes to the way we bank. Given the current context, customers’ confidence in digital has increased. “Activities with no added value will disappear from day-to-day life. You won’t waste time going to the bank, but the banker’s role as an advisor will remain important.”

BT Talks, Banca Transilvania’s podcast, is a show where athletes like Simona Halep, artists such as INNA, and vloggers & content creators like Selly share a bit of their stories and mindset to inspire the whole country.

Episodes are available on the BT website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or YouTube. Don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss an episode. 😄

Editor: Popa Adelina, Marketing Officer, Banca Transilvania