+10% customer base, +26% retail loan portfolio and +30% cards issued

Banca Transilvania and Victoriabank take stock of Victoriabank’s achievements one year after BT became a shareholder and the strategic partnership was formed with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, aimed at supporting entrepreneurs and Moldova’s economy.

For Victoriabank, Moldova’s third-largest bank, 2018 brought both a revamp of its business and strategy and positive results. The customer base is up by almost 10%, to over 620,000. The retail loan portfolio increased by 26% to 844 thousand Moldovan lei, equivalent to approximately 211 thousand RON. Victoriabank also advanced on cards: the number of cards issued in 2018 versus 2017 rose by 30%, to approximately 310,000 cards in circulation.

"Banca Transilvania’s arrival at Victoriabank marked the start of a new chapter for the development of the banking system and the business environment in the Republic of Moldova. BT’s involvement has been, and continues to be, followed with great interest. In this first year of working together we rolled out a plan to reorganize the bank, bringing BT’s best practices at Victoriabank in customer focus, products and services, technology and people, and the results were quick to follow", said Victor Turcan, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Victoriabank.

"Banca Transilvania’s priorities at Victoriabank so far have been to ensure transparency, support entrepreneurs and retail customers, develop alternative banking channels, enhance services and products, and integrate the two banks’ teams. We are pleased to see the first results of replicating BT’s business model at Victoriabank", said Bogdan Plesuvescu, Chairman of the Management Board, Victoriabank.

Greater transparency at Victoriabank:

• Following compliance with the National Bank of Moldova (BNM) recommendations on transparency of Victoriabank’s shareholder structure, the BNM Executive Committee lifted the enhanced supervisory regime at the beginning of 2018.
• Business lines were reorganized and operations and lending activities were centralized.
• Victoriabank is the first bank in the Republic of Moldova to launch an online platform to present and sell assets held by the bank as a result of enforcement proceedings. The total value of assets purchased through it doubled in 2018 compared with 2017.
• Victoriabank implemented a recovery strategy to reduce the stock of non‑performing loans; these decreased by around EUR 10 million.
• Victoriabank’s financial and prudential position improved significantly in 2018. Regulatory requirements under Basel III, as transposed by the National Bank of Moldova, were successfully implemented, as were IFRS 9 financial reporting standards. Victoriabank’s capital adequacy ratio exceeds 30%, and IFRS provisioning coverage of non‑performing loans is 40%.
  
  

Supporting entrepreneurs by replicating BT products: CPAG (Contul Primul An Gratuit – First Year Free Account), a package of free services for newly established companies; ROFG (Rapid Ordinar Fara Garantii – Standard Fast, Unsecured), intended especially for SMEs; and PSGB (Plafon de Scrisori de Garanții Bancare – Bank Guarantee Letter Facility) for clients that participate regularly in tenders. More than 500 entrepreneurs in the Republic of Moldova have benefited from these products to date.

Supporting individuals with products, services and features:

• In August 2018, Victoriabank kicked off a new phase in the development of retail lending in the Republic of Moldova with the following features:

- Relaunch of the mortgage loan and of the unsecured and secured personal loan.

- Extension of the tenor for secured personal loans to up to 10 years, and for mortgages to up to 25 years, resulting in a much lower monthly payment.

- Acceptance, in addition to salary, of other income types to obtain loans: dividends, income from activities abroad, etc.

- Zero commission at loan origination; the monthly administration fee is no longer a percentage of the outstanding balance, and the file analysis fee is paid after loan approval.

- Introduction of contracts with higher consumer‑protection standards.

• Launch of Prima Casa loans: between March – December 2018, Victoriabank granted over 200 such loans.
• Launch of the VB Lunch card, which replaces traditional meal vouchers. It has the features of a contactless bank card. Between July – December 2018, more than 9,000 such meal cards were ordered for issuance, and they are accepted at approximately 430 locations.
  
  

More modern services thanks to investment in technology

• Launch of the new version of the VictoriaMobile mobile banking app
• Victoriabank increased the number of cash‑in ATMs from 2 to 14, located in Chisinau, Balti and Cahul. Retail and corporate customers can top up their cards at Victoriabank ATMs in Moldovan lei, US dollars or euros.
  
  

Benefits for customers of the Banca Transilvania Financial Group:

• A single, reduced fee for money transfers from Victoriabank to BT: EUR 10 per transaction, regardless of the amount sent in lei, euros, Swiss francs or pounds sterling.
• Transactions in Moldovan lei at 150 BT branches in Cluj‑Napoca, Bucharest, Iasi, Suceava, Botosani and Timisoara: currency exchange at the exchange desk, cash withdrawals and deposits.
• Possibility to pay BT Leasing Moldova instalments via Victoriabank – online or in branches.
  
  

2018 also saw Victoriabank’s integration into the Banca Transilvania Financial Group from a human resources standpoint. Over 300 people took part in training sessions and meetings with the BT team in Romania and the Republic of Moldova. In addition, Victoriabank’s 1,300 employees have access to Banca Transilvania’s e‑learning platform.

Banca Transilvania and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development hold over 70% of Victoriabank’s share capital.