Banca Transilvania turned 32 years of activity in February, marked by the annual BT Founders’ Meeting, an event through which the bank honors its beginnings and those who laid the foundations of its story, with confidence, courage and optimism.

Back in time: 1993, the year it all began

The idea of setting up a bank with its headquarters in Cluj-Napoca belongs to Dan Palagheanu (Radu Dănuț Palagheanu) who, together with his associates at Compexit, also a Cluj-Napoca company, formed the core group of the bank’s founders, later joined by other investors. In the end, the group reached 46 founders, most of them local entrepreneurs.

The bank set out in 1993 with initial capital of 2 million dollars and the ambition to build a leading bank in Transylvania. That’s where the name came from.

Who are the founders of Banca Transilvania, who believed in the bank’s success from the concept stage: 

• Avram Vasile Doru
• Badiu Nicolae
• Banciu Adela Roxana
• Beniurushvili Simeon
• Ciorcilă Horia
• Ciurchea Ioan Marius
• Constantinescu Mircea Mihai
• Copândean Alexandru Velu
• Creț Aurel Dan
• Cristea Gheorghe
• Gavrea Aurel
• Ghite Sorin Voicu
• Groiss Iosef
• Gruiță Dan Florin
• Iliescu Cecilia
• Javorszky Imre
• Jeican Constantin Miron
• Joldeș Constantin
• Lupoian Vasile Adrian
• Maier Florin
• Meciu Eugen Alexandru
• Mercean Gligor
• Micoriciu Valentin
• Mitaș Dudaș
• Moga Mircea
• Moga Voica
• Năsui Dorel Vasile
• Năsui Simion Ioan
• Nicoară Marius
• Nistor Dan
• Palagheanu Radu Dănuț
• Pluscal Simona
• Poienaru Ioan Nistor
• Popescu Pihal Dan Constantin
• Pop Iosif
• Rațiu Ioan
• Rotta Răzvan
• Silaghi Claudiu Eugen
• Tiberiu Alexandru
• Trenca Ioan
• Torgie Teodor
• Tothfalusi Janos
• Țăran Florin Eugen
• Țârțan Ioan
• Cluj Chamber of Commerce and Industry
• FPP 1 Banat-Crișana
  
  

The early context: Romania in 1994

Romania in 1994 was rather gray. A few years after the Revolution, we only dreamed of the European Union. Democracy and Romanian capital were at the beginning. Banking was entirely different, mainly about loans and deposits, but with no cards and no ATMs. There were, however, many opportunities because the economy and the country were in full transition from a centralized system — in which everything was owned by the State — to a decentralized model based on private ownership. It was the perfect time for those who had the courage to look beyond the present, as the bank’s founders did.

- this is part of the message from the bank’s senior management, signed by Horia Ciorcilă, BT founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors, on the occasion of BT #30 years.

Visual identity: a logo that tells a story

Choosing the brand identity for Banca Transilvania was one of the priorities. The founders wanted the entrepreneurial idea to take shape quickly and the logo to reflect the bank’s origins and ambitions.

I drew the logo based on the bank’s suggestions, and developing the concept and making the choice took about a month. The logo that most vividly conveys the historical weight associated with Transylvania was selected. The lettering, the halberds and the shield in the logo — all warlike, medieval-inspired elements specific to Transylvania and its historical evolution — symbolized BT’s fight for recognition that was to follow immediately after launch, as well as the tenacity of those who joined that fight. The colors weren’t hard to choose, especially since at the time the possibilities for printing and application on different materials were more limited than they are now. Black and yellow have always offered a pleasing contrast, and are also very well suited to banking. Yellow, in fact, suggested the gold that the small bank of the time, Banca Transilvania, was to generate and manage.

- Ioana Avram, architect and author of BT’s first brand identity.

1994: the first branch, the first team and the first customers

Banca Transilvania began operations on February 16, 1994, with the opening of the Cluj Branch, at Bulevardul Eroilor 36. The team had 13 people, and the first customers were the founders themselves, their families and friends. That same year, the bank had grown to 5 branches and 15,000 customers.
 

Banca Transilvania today: the banking market leader

The bank is today the market leader in Romania and in Southeastern Europe, a banking and digital ecosystem that connects millions of individuals and businesses to financial solutions. The bank has a market share of 23%, 5 million customers, 72,000 shareholders & investors and over 10,000 employees, as well as 530 branches.

BT is part of the Banca Transilvania Financial Group, present in three countries, Romania, Italy and the Republic of Moldova, active in banking, asset management, brokerage, leasing, private pensions, microfinance and insurance. The more than 20 companies in the BT Group share a common mission: to generate positive impact in national and regional economies, to contribute to the prosperity of people and companies, to accelerate the development of the business environment and to support a sustainable future for communities and the environment.