Vienna International Banking Industry News

Read the latest headlines about developments in the international banking industry in Vienna and Austria

European Union: Private Trading of Banks to be Restricted

The European Union intends to severly restrict risky private trading of banks.

January 7, 2014

Hungary: Erste Group Confident

The third-largest lender in CESEE underlined that the Hungarian subsidiary will not be sold. The Austrian bank is confident to reach the turnaround soon.

January 6, 2014

First Offer for RBI´s Hungarian Subsidiary

The partly nationalized Hungarian lender Szechenyi Bank is interested in the Hungarian subsidiaries of the Austrian banks Erste Group and Raiffeisen Bank International.

January 6, 2014

Erste Group Bank AG - SWOT Analysis & Company Report

This new report contains in depth information and data about Erste Group and its operations and markets. It contains an overview, business and strategy description, financial ratios, valuation & forecast data, SWOT analysis, plus data on key events.

January 6, 2014

Raiffeisen Bank International AG - SWOT Analysis & Company Report 2014

This new report contains in depth information and data about Raiffeisen Bank International AG and its operations and markets. It contains an overview, business and strategy description, financial ratios, valuation & forecast data and a SWOT analysis.

January 6, 2014

VBAG: Complete Write-Off Possible

The Austrian state may has to write down its interest completely. Further capital injections are very likely. Also VBAG´s other shareholders will be obliged to provide fresh funds for the ailing bank.

January 4, 2014

Hypo Group Alpe Adria: „Bad Bank Will Come“

Klaus Liebscher, chairman of Hypo Group´s supervisory board, underlines that a bad bank will be established for the nationalized lender. Nevertheless, the bank remains the biggest financial disaster in Austria´s history.

January 4, 2014

Austria: „El Dorado for Borrowers“

According to Bank Austria´s management board member Dieter Hengl, Austria is an oasis for borrowers. Interest rates have reached an all-time low.

January 4, 2014

European Savers in Danger

Already this year, savers in the Eurozone may fear a compulsory tax on deposits, the Danish Saxo Bank says.

January 4, 2014

Czech Governor Awarded Banker of the Year 2014

Miroslav Singer, governor of the Czech National Bank (CNB) was given the Central Banker of the Year 2014 award for Europe by The Banker.

January 3, 2014

Eurozone: Number of Bank Credits Keeps Declining

The financial institutes in the Eurozone have been cutting back on granting credits. The lending for both business corporations and private persons has dropped by 2.3 percent.

January 3, 2014

Hungary: MKB Bank Sells Romanian Subsidiary

As announced in a statement Hungarian MKB Bank has sold its entire stake of its Romanian subsidiary.

January 3, 2014

Slovenia: Banking Sector Still in Turmoil

Small banks in Slovenia are reasons for concern in regard to their capital shortfalls.

January 3, 2014

Austria: FMA to Activate Whistleblower Hotline

At the beginning of this year the Financial Market Authority (FMA) in Austria has activated a “whistleblower hotline” for bank insiders to report about potential abuses.

January 3, 2014

Massive Change in Banking Landscape

The business model of banks comes more and more under pressure. In the next years, about the half of the bank shops will be closed, banking expert Hans-Gert Penzel predicts.

January 2, 2014

Erste Group and Bank Austria Face Lawsuits

Two Austrian lending banks are involved both as plaintiffs and as defendants in bankrupt construction company Alpine’s court trials.

January 2, 2014

Slovenia: FDI to Remain Low in 2014

No improvement in increasing foreign direct investments in Slovenia is expected this year. The country has one of the smallest shares in inward FDI among EU member countries.

January 2, 2014

Czech Republic: Household Debts Increasing

Debts to banks and other financial institutes by Czech households keep on increasing, according to a report by the Czech National Bank (CNB).

January 2, 2014

Austria: Hard Times for Regional Banks

Not only large banks are under pressure. In 2014, Austrian regional banks expect enormous challenges to deal with.

December 31, 2013

Bank Austria Considers Establishing Sub-Brand

In the next years, the Austrian subsidiary of Italian UniCredit wants to put more effort into the development of the mobile and online banking segment.

December 31, 2013

Hypo Group: Fatal Errors of Austrian National Bank

Before Hypo Group Alpe Adria was nationalized in late 2009, the Austrian National Bank (OeNB) has misjudged the situation of the problem bank completely. The Austrian government demonstrates its incompetence once again.

December 30, 2013

Hypo Group: „The Wrong Decisions were Made“

Johannes Ditz, former chairman of the Austrian nationalized Hypo Group Alpe Adria, thinks that the Austrian government could have avoided a massive burden for the taxpayers.

December 28, 2013

Austria: „Lending Becomes More Expensive”

In an interview with the Austrian daily “Presse”, CEO of Hypo Vorarlberg Michael Grahammer talks about the future lending conditions. The corporate sector faces a drastic increase in borrowing costs.

December 27, 2013

Hypo Group: Austrian Government Seems Aimless

Although the restructuring of the nationalized Austrian lender is one of the most pressing issues, the Austrian government could not present a sound concept yet.

December 27, 2013

UniCredit Sells Bad Assets to Cerberus

The majority shareholder of Austrian Bawag acquires a portfolio worth €950m.

December 27, 2013

Slovenia: Fresh Money for Major Banks

Bonds of BAMC (Bank Asset Management Company), Slovenia’s bad bank, will be traded on Friday for the first time. The bonds will be forwarded to the country’s biggest banks in return for their bad loans.

December 27, 2013

VBAG: Further State Aids Questionable

The governing Austrian social democrats (SPÖ) are against providing further funds to the partly nationalized banking group.

December 26, 2013

Austria Bought Time for Examining Hypo Deal

Austria was granted more time for a possible appeal of the purchase of problem bank Hypo Group Alpe Adria from former parent company BayernLB.

December 23, 2013

Austrian and Germans Offered Most for Bulgarian Schuldschein

Average interest rates for Bulgarian Schuldschein loan range between 3.4 to 4.6 percent. Austrian and German investors offered most of the € 290m loan.

December 23, 2013

„No Debt-Backed Tax Reform“

Austrian Finance Minister Michael Spindelegger underlines that Austria has to put more effort into fiscal consolidation measures.

December 23, 2013

„CESEE No Driver Yet“

Birgit Kuras, CEO of Vienna Stock Exchange, thinks that the Vienna Stock Exchange is highly influenced by the CESEE operations of listed companies.

December 23, 2013

Slovenia: PM Bratusek Confident About Tackling State Debts

Even though the country is expected to issue new state bonds next year to tackle state debts Prime Minister Alenka Bratusek suggested that Slovenia does not require loans immediately.

December 23, 2013

Austria: Bank Rescue Massive Burden for Public Finance

In total, costs of the Austrian banking package come at € 6.75bn. Expenses are only partially covered by revenues.

December 21, 2013

VBAG: Call for Further State Aids Likely

The Austrian VBAG (Volksbanken AG), top institute of the Volksbanken sector, still has a substantial capital shortfall.

December 21, 2013

CESEE: Dependence on Foreign Demand Remains Main Obstacle

In 2014, Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe (CESEE) faces a slight upward trend. The structural difficulties persist, however.

December 21, 2013

New CEO at BCR Asigurari de Viata

Sorin Mititelu was appointed as new CEO of Romanian BCR Asigurari de Viata.

December 21, 2013

Rothensteiner: Austrian Sovereign Debt Rating Includes Bank Bail-Out

Unlike the rating agency Moody´s, head of RZB (Raiffeisen Zentralbank) Walter Rothensteiner thinks that the Austrian sovereign debt rating is not endangered by the nationalized banking sector.

December 20, 2013

Austria: Slight Lending Growth

The Austrian National Bank (OeNB) rejects reports on credit shortages. In contrast to the Eurozone, Austria´s banking industry expands lending.

December 20, 2013

Austria: Rules for Bank Tax to Be Changed

The governing parties call for changes in the bank tax which would increase the burden of some Austrian banks.

December 20, 2013

Austria: New CEO for Hypo Group Alpe Adria

The search for a new CEO for Hypo Group has ended. On Friday the bank has found a new head of the management board since the position was vacant after Gottwald Kranebitter’s resignation this summer.

December 20, 2013

Austria: VBAG May Require Further State Aid

Partially nationalized VBAG is expected to post losses of more than € 200m.

December 20, 2013

Slovenia: Budget Shortfall Greater than Expected

As per the end of November the country’s budget deficit amounted to almost € 1.62bn, according to the latest estimates by the Finance Ministry.

December 20, 2013

Czech Republic: Economic Sentiment Rises

As published by the Czech Statistical Office (CSU), the Czech economic sentiment indicator rose by one point to 5.5 points compared to November.

December 20, 2013

Bulgaria: Economic Upturn Not Sooner Than 2015

As reported by Bulgarian daily Standart, an economist at World Bank pointed out that the country has not yet reached the economic situation of before the start of the financial crisis in 2008.

December 20, 2013

Austria: Options of Bad Bank for Hypo under Examination

Finance Minister Spindelegger intends to meet with experts to discuss options of a bad bank for Hypo Group Alpe Adria.

December 20, 2013

Austrian SME Suffer from Credit Shortage

The real economy benefits only partly from the low interest rates. According to Creditreform, borrowing becomes more and more difficult for small and medium-sized enterprises.

December 20, 2013

Slovenia: EU Commission Approves Bank Aid

On Wednesday the European Commission has approved state aid for five Slovenian banks.

December 19, 2013

Austria: S&P Keeps Rating Unchanged

The U.S. rating agency confirms the “AA+” rating for Austrian sovereign bonds. An upgrade is unlikely in the next years.

December 19, 2013

Banking Union Completed

The Finance Ministers of the Eurozone have reached a compromise on the last pillar of the banking union. The deposit protection mechanism will come into power in 2015.

December 19, 2013

Slovenia: Growth Forecast Cut Again

The World Bank predicts a longer recession in Slovenia. The Slovenian economy will not leave the recession behind before 2015.

December 19, 2013