Vienna International Company News

RBI: Preliminary 2015 Consolidated Profit of EUR 383 Million

Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI) announces a preliminary 2015 consolidated profit of EUR 383 million. This is above the guidance previously given, primarily due to lower than expected net provisioning for impairment losses of EUR 1,266 million, 28 percent below 2014. This development was spread across a number of markets. General administrative expenses were EUR 2,915 million, 4 per cent below the prior year. Transformation program costs in 2015 were approximately EUR 90 million, in line with guidance. FY 2015 guidance had also included goodwill impairment charges and risk costs amounting to EUR 124.1 million, which were reallocated to FY 2014 in the course of a restatement.

February 2, 2016

Klaus Toepfer to Give Keynote Speech at Economic and Environmental Forum in Vienna

Good governance in the OSCE area, reinforcing security and stability through co-operation, will be theme of the 24th Economic and Environmental Forum and the 1st Preparatory Meeting taking place on 25 and 26 January in Vienna. The meeting will focus on good environmental governance to enable sustainable economic development.

January 22, 2016

UniCredit Bank Austria Named Best Trade Finance Bank in Austria

US financial magazine Global Finance selected Bank Austria for the eighth time in a row "Best Trade Finance Bank" in Austria.

January 21, 2016

Czechs Jirí Šmejc and Karel Komárek Want to Take Control of Casinos Austria

The Czech consortium Austrian Gaming Holding (AGH) of billionaires Jirí Šmejc and Karel Komárek, headquartered in Prague may soon be new majority owner of Casinos Austria AG. According to the Federal Competition Authority (BWB), Austrian Gaming Holding intends to increase one hand its stake in Medial to 88.89 percent and on the other hand to acquire 16.79 percent of Casinos Austria AG shares. Through these acquisitions, AGH will hold directly or indirectly 50.82 percent of the shares and thus acquire sole control of the CASAG.

January 21, 2016

Vienna Congress comsult 2016: "The Future of Growth"

"The Future of Growth" was the topic of the Vienna Congress com•sult 2016 which took place at Vienna's House of Industry. The Vienna Congress once again brought together prominent figures from the worlds of politics, economics and science to discuss future development of different aspects, focusing on the issue of migrant crisis, which has been one of the greatest challenges faced by European states and institutions in every sense. Distinguished participants from industry, politics and the business community such as Milica Pejanovic, Mohamed El Baradei, Mario Monti, Markus Rogan, Dan Shechtman and Guenther Fehlinger discussed perspectives and strategies for new growth in Europe.

January 20, 2016

Robert Zadrazil Takes Over the Helm of Bank Austria from Willibald Cernko

After having been board member of Bank Austria for ten years, Robert Zadrazil (45) will now step it up and replace Willibald Cernko (59) who will step down as of 1 March 2016. The bank speaks of a generation change.

January 18, 2016

Black Diamond Equipment Relocates European Headquarters from Switzerland to Austria

Producer of climbing, skiing, mountain sports equipment Black Diamond will move its European headquarters from Basel to Innsbruck. Tim Bantle has been appointed Managing Director. Black Diamond is actively recruiting staff for the new office, with approximately 35 jobs across sales, marketing, customer service, operations and finance. The new office is expected to be operational in May 2016. Black Diamond Equipment was established in 1989 and has its headquarters in Salt Lake City in Utah.

January 14, 2016

Central and Eastern European Forum in Vienna next Week

The Central and Eastern European Forum - organized by Euromoney - is taking place in Vienna next week. 1,000 top level policymakers, issuers, and commentators from the region will join local and international investors to help plan, debate and analyze the economic agenda for the region for the year ahead.

January 13, 2016

Strabag Builds Hydroelectric Power Plant in Bosnia-Herzegovina Worth € 57 Million

A consortium consisting of Austrian construction group Strabag and Croatian industrial company Končar has been awarded the contract to build the Vranduk power plant on the river Bosna on behalf of energy supply company JP Elektroprivreda BiH.

January 11, 2016

EU to Crack Down on Postal Rip-Offs including Austrian Post

The FT reports that Brussels is preparing a regulatory crackdown against rip-off pricing by national postal operators on cross-border parcel deliveries. According to a study, cross-border parcel deliveries are often five times more expensive than identical trips on the domestic market. While the price of a standard 2 kg parcel delivery in Austria with the national postal operator is €4.44, to have that same parcel send to neighbouring Italy would cost €14. Sending the same parcel back from Italy to Austria will rise to €25. In order to connect the common market, the EU wants to develop the potential of e-commerce and to boost cross-border trade. According to the FT, a spokeswoman of the European Commission said that early next year the Commission will “launch measures to enhance price transparency and regulatory oversight” of the European parcel delivery market.

December 22, 2015

VSE: US Interest Rate Decision Likely to Increase Appeal of Austrian Stocks

The Vienna Stock Exchange can look back at a year of solid developments on the stock market in 2015. The uptrend in equity trading volumes has now been sustained for more than two years: trading volumes were up by 24.3%; the ATX gained 11.20%, and innovations in bond trading were the highlights of the year. Market capitalization on the Vienna Stock Exchange reached EUR 86.28 billion in December 2015. This was a gain of 7.86% over the year-end figure of 2014.

December 18, 2015

Biggest Viennese Real Estate Deal Ever - Sale of The Mall Closed

Bank Austria - via its subsidiary BAI - closed the sale of "The Mall", the largest and most modern shopping mall in the heart of Vienna. The buyer is a consortium led by Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing (MSREI). UniCredit Bank Austria did not disclose the price, but claims that the transaction is Vienna's largest real estate deal ever.

December 16, 2015

UniCredit Final Restructuring Program on Bank Austria's Retail Business

UniCredit announced a major step in its strategic plan execution, by launching a profound restructuring program on its Austrian retail business that will enable Bank Austria to develop its business in a sustainable way, while bringing down significantly its cost income ratio. The restructuring plan will allow to reduce by 2018 Bank Austria's overall costs by € 150mn per year on an ongoing basis on top of the Strategic Plan and with main focus on personnel expenses, leading to an overall cost decrease by almost € 300mn versus 2014 in order to ensure the business sustainability in the long-run.

December 15, 2015

US Company Contour Moves European Headquarters from Paris to Vienna

The Vienna-based European headquarters will be the strategic centre for all thermal and renewable energy facilities in Austria, Italy, Czech Republic, Romania, Poland, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Armenia, Spain, Northern Ireland and Ukraine.

December 11, 2015

RBI Sells Slovenian Subsidiary to US Private Equity Firm Apollo

Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI) has reached an agreement to sell its Slovenian bank, Raiffeisen Banka d.d., to Biser Bidco, which is managed by an affiliate of Apollo Global Management, LLC. The purchase price has not been disclosed. The expected deconsolidation effect on RBI’s consolidated result will amount to minus EUR 49 million.

December 10, 2015

New Vienna Central Station Offers New Connections and Shorter Travel Times

With the timetable change on 13 December 2015, Vienna Central Station and Vienna Meidling train station will be assuming their full role as a regional transportation hub. Bringing together the Western, Southern, Eastern and Northern Routes at Vienna Central Station and Vienna Meidling, creates a transportation hub with direct connection to all Austrian state capitals as well as Vienna Airport. For travelers this means better connections, shorter travel times and more comfortable traveling.

December 7, 2015 · Updated: December 7, 2015; 18:15

Californian Woman Can Not Take Austrian Railways to Court in the US

Supreme Court says, Carol Sachs who was heavily injured in Innsbruck can’t sue in the US. Her lawsuit against the Austrian national railroad ÖBB for injuries that she suffered while attempting to board a train in Austria does not fall within the “commercial activity” exception to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, and is therefore barred by the doctrine of sovereign immunity. The American wanted USD 20 million compensation from ÖBB.

December 2, 2015

VIG: Elisabeth Stadler to Replace Peter Hagen as CEO

Due to differences in opinion regarding the future strategic orientation and steering of the Group, Peter Hagen will be leaving his position as Chairman of the Managing Board of the Vienna Insurance Group on 31 December 2015. Elisabeth Stadler will become his successor.

December 2, 2015

Constantia Flexibles Acquires SE Asian Labels Producer Pemara

Constantia Flexibles Group strengthens its position in the Southeast Asia labels market by acquiring the Australian company Pemara Labels Group. The parties agreed not to disclose any financial details and the transaction is expected to close in the next few months. Pemara operates four plants in Australia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia, along with sales offices in Sydney (Australia) and Manila (Philippines).

December 1, 2015

Andritz Subsidiary Schuler Lands Large-Scale Contract in China

Schuler AG has received a further major order from FAW Volkswagen Automotive Co., Ltd. The Chinese company ordered press line with ServoDirect Technology and a servo tryout press for its Qingdao facility. With a total force of 81,000 kilonewtons, the servo press line will be mainly used to produce car body parts, such as hoods or doors. The order value is in the middle double-digit-million-euro range.

November 30, 2015

EBRD to Become 30 Per Cent Shareholder in Raiffeisen Bank Aval

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is about to become a 30 per cent shareholder in Raiffeisen Bank Aval JSC (RBA), a leading universal bank in Ukraine and a subsidiary of Raiffeisen Bank International AG (RBI), under an agreement signed in Kiev today.

November 25, 2015

Large Securitisation Deal between EIB and UniCredit Leasing Austria

EIB participates in securitisation transaction of UniCredit Leasing Austria with EUR 230.9 mil. The European Investment Bank (EIB) will make available EUR 230.9 million to UniCredit Leasing Austria through the purchase of asset-backed securities (ABS).

November 24, 2015

Hungarian Central Bank Buys Austria's 68.8% Stake in Budapest Stock Exchange

Austrian shareholders CEESEG and OeKB sell their 68.8% stake in Budapest Stock Exchange to Hungarian Central Bank for €42m ($45m), the Hungarian central bank confirmed officially.

November 24, 2015

VTB Bank Austria has Passed the European Central Bank’s Stress Tests

To meet these requirements, VTB Bank (Austria) AG boosted the capital, raising its consolidated capital ratio from 9.3% as of the end of 2014 to 13.7% as of the end of September 2015.

November 16, 2015

Bank Austria Posts Net Profit of EUR 660 Million for the First Nine Months

UniCredit Bank Austria announced that net profit in the three months to end-September dropped to 172 million euros from 291 million in the previous three months. As reported, the bank plans to terminate up to 14,000 jobs and restructure or exit its retail business in Austria and leasing operations in Italy as it seeks to strengthen its equity.

November 11, 2015

UniCredit - Bank Austria: CEE Operations Move from Vienna to Milan - Retail Business to be Sold or Restructured

Until the end of 2016, all CEE interests with currently 48,000 employees have to be transferred to Milan. Until now this division has been the most important earner for Bank Austria. The 13 banking subsidiaries of Bank Austria in Eastern and Southeastern Europe employ nearly 48,000 people - and thus the majority of the approximately 57,000 employees of Bank Austria. The retail banking business of in Austria with 1.6 million customers has to be sold or restructured, Unicredit announced in the afternoon.

November 11, 2015

Voestalpine Increased Revenue by 4.1% in First Half 2015/16

In the first half of the business year 2015/16 (April 1 to September 30), the steel group Voestalpine continued its performance despite an economic environment that – viewed globally – is inconsistent. In a year-to-year comparison, it increased its revenue by 4.1% from EUR 5.6 billion to EUR 5.8 billion.

November 11, 2015

Tensions Prior to Announcement of the UniCredit Savings Plans

It is rumored that the groupwide reduction of up to 14,000 jobs will be announced today. It is also about the future of Bank Austria. Bank Austria's parent UniCredit may withdraw the group's CEE head office from Vienna.

November 11, 2015

Press Freedom: Every Fifth Day a Journalist is Killed at Work

According to a report from Unesco, worldwide more than 700 reporters have been killed from 2006 to 2014 in the exercise of their profession. On International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, the OSCE Representative calls on participating States to step up their investigations.

November 2, 2015

Insolvent DIY Chain BauMax Ended Its Operations

Insolvent DIY chain BauMax ended its operations completely on Friday with many stores sold to Obi of Germany. Seven stores did not attract a buyer. Some 700 employees in total are at risk of losing their jobs.

October 30, 2015

Alexander Lewald Named Chief Technology Officer of Kapsch TrafficComAG

Kapsch TrafficCom has announced that Alexander Lewald will be joining the Management Board of Kapsch TrafficCom AG as Chief Technology Officer effective November 1, 2015.

October 28, 2015

VIG Completes Acquisition of Latvian Non-Life Insurer Baltikums AAS

Vienna Insurance Group (VIG) has finalized the 100-percent acquisition of Riga-based Baltikums AAS. As a result of the acquisition, Vienna Insurance Group is now one of the top five insurers on the Latvian market.

October 27, 2015

Meinl Bank: Stephen Coleman to Become New CEO

Stephen Coleman will replace Günter Weiss, who must vacate his seat due to a ruling from the Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA).

October 23, 2015

Bank Austria Sells Prominent Property "The Mall" to Morgan Stanley Consortium

UniCredit Bank Austria AG announces that the purchase agreement for the shopping centre The Mall at Wien Mitte was signed with Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing (MSREI), pending approval by the antitrust authorities.

October 22, 2015

RBI’s Russian Subsidiary Sells its Pension Fund Business

RBI’s Russian subsidiary (AO Raiffeisenbank) closed the sale of its pension fund business (ZAO NPF Raiffeisen) to the Russian BIN Group. The transaction will result in a one-off gain before tax of around EUR 87 million for RBI, which will be booked in the fourth quarter of 2015. It has been agreed that the parties will not disclose the price at which the transaction took place.

October 19, 2015

Bank of China to Open Branch in Vienna

Bank of China, one of the 5 biggest state-owned commercial banks in China intends to open its first branch in Vienna in the near future, as its Chairman Tian Guoli recently said while visiting Vienna.

October 16, 2015

Wienerberger Annual Reports Ranked Among the Top 20 Worldwide

Wienerberger, the world's largest producer of bricks, has again won recognition for its Annual Report 2014 and also, for the first time, for its Sustainability Report 2014. Heimo Scheuch, Chief Executive Officer of Wienerberger AG, takes pride in these distinctions: "Open and active communication with all our stakeholders and the highest possible level of transparency are top priorities for us."

October 15, 2015

Life Sciences Field is Booming in Vienna

Nine percent revenue growth, five percent increase in the workforce and a large increase in business startups - Vienna as a location for life science businesses is attracting companies at a rate never seen before.

October 14, 2015

Steep Q3 Rise in Equity Trading Volumes on Vienna Stock Exchange

Despite the traditional sluggishness in summer months, trading volumes in equities rose steeply in Q3 2015 by 19.1%, climbing from EUR 11.41 billion (Q3 2014) to EUR 13.59 billion (Q3 2105).

October 7, 2015

PayLife Becomes SIX Payment Services

In September 2013, the Swiss financial services provider SIX acquired PayLife, the market leader for cashless payments in Austria, from the Austrian banks. With the acquisition and integration of PayLife SIX underlines its goal of driving international growth and its ambition to be among the leading European providers of card-based payments. Starting today, PayLife Bank GmbH is renamed SIX Payment Services ( Austria ) GmbH.

September 23, 2015

Erste Group Extends Andreas Treichl’s CEO Mandate to 2020

The Supervisory Board of Erste Group Bank AG extended Andreas Treichl’s mandate as Chairman of the Management Board until mid-2020.

September 17, 2015

Export Award: Austria's Best Exporters

The success of exporters on international markets secures prosperity and jobs in Austria, with six out of every ten euros generated by exports. Recently the 2015 Export Award winners were selected by an independent expert panel. The Austrian Export Award gives annual recognition to the most dedicated and successful companies.

September 11, 2015

Vienna as a Congress City Takes Second Place Worldwide

Austria's capital city, Vienna, has once again confirmed its standing as one of the world's most popular congress cities in 2014. In the 2014 ranking of the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) Vienna took second place with 202 international congresses, thereby climbing one place against 2013. Paris (with 214) was at the top of the ranking.

September 11, 2015

Magna Steyr Aimes for full Capacity Utilisation at Graz Plant

The car manufacturers Jaguar Land Rover are moving part of their production from England to Austria. With new orders from Jaguar Land Rover, BMW and Daimler, the medium-term vehicle production at the Magna plant in Graz is set to return to levels in excess of 200,000 per year.

September 11, 2015

Austrian Airlines Returns to Shanghai

The return to Shanghai highlights the continued importance of the Chinese market to Austrian Airlines and the high value attached to its outbound market in particular. Austrian Airlines had already included Shanghai in its flight schedule starting on April 28, 2004. However, flight service was terminated in January 2007 as part of the redimensioning of the airline’s long-haul fleet and the related decommissioning of all its Airbus A330 and A340 long-haul aircraft.

September 10, 2015

British Police Orders Surveillance Aircraft from Austrian Airborne Technologies

The UK National Police Air Service (UK NPAS) has awarded the contract to deliver 4 role-equipped fixed-wing surveillance aircraft to Airborne Technologies from Wiener Neustadt. In addition to substantial German police units, another important police force will now rely on the Austrian company that has established itself as potential partner for police aviation.

September 10, 2015

BDO Austria Expands Consulting Expertise

Ten partners together with their teams have switched from a renowned Austrian competitor to BDO Austria. Thanks to this switch, BDO Austria is able to expand its consulting expertise in the areas of SMEs and family business.

September 10, 2015

It’s all about Fashion during Vienna's Fashion Week

Until September 13th it’s all about fashion in Vienna’s Museums-Quartier. About 70 designers show their collections: at fashion shows and in the adjacent sales area in Quartier21, which invites visitors to go shopping. This year marks the seventh edition of the MQ Vienna Fashion Week. Last year, over 10,000 visitors came to the fashion event.

September 8, 2015

Strabag Wins Road Deal in Poland for € 118 Million

Listed builder Strabag won a EUR 118 million (USD 135.4 million) contract in Poland for the construction of a 15 km motorway section between Woźniki and Pyrzowice plus one motorway maintenance facility, two rest stops, 29 bridges and wildlife crossings. Completion is supposed to take place in mid-2018.

August 27, 2015

Erste Group Presents Net Profit of EUR 487.2 Million in H1 15

Erste Group closed the first half of 2015 with positive results, reflected in strong improvements in profitability, asset quality, lending and capital. The group reported a net profit of EUR 487.2 million in H1 2015, compared to a negative result of EUR -929.7 million in the similar period last year; all countries except Hungary made a positive contribution to this development. Total assets increased to EUR 197.5 billion, compared to EUR 196.3 billion at the end of 2014. This balance sheet growth reflects a 2.2% advance in net lending to customers compared to the end of 2014, to EUR 123.5 billion, supported by the 1.7% growth in loans to households, 2.0% to SMEs and 5.9% to large corporates.

August 7, 2015