The central bank governor of Poland, Marek Belka, admonished Polish banks to seek opportunities and make attempts at buying local rival banks owned by foreign lenders, though in 'a smart and intelligent way'.
Poland's banking system is 70% controlled by foreign lenders and it saw a number of deals where in the last few years saw parent institutions put under pressure to sell their holdings to boost its capital.
According to Belka, through an interview with Gazeta Wyborcza daily, "It is not about taking something from somebody. But if somebody is not successful, take them over." He added he advocated banks taking the opportunities available 'in a smart and intelligent way.'
In early 2013, Poland's largest financial institution PKO BP took over Nordea Bank Polska for PLN2.83 billion or USD907.31 million. In other years, Commerzbank's BRE Bank, Millenium's BCP's Bank Millenium and Bank Pekao are but some of the banks that have been said to be contemplating to go on sale.
Join the Conversation