UniCredit Romania is working with several corporate clients to launch some initial public offerings on the stock exchange, stated Melih Mengu, who has been recently confirmed by the NBR for the position of vice-president in charge of the corporate unit of HVB-Tiriac Bank. Mengu, 40, had been appointed as early as last autumn as a member of the managing board of the future UniCredit Tiriac Bank that is to be set up this summer.
"Romanian entrepreneurs had started to be tempted by the idea of floatation on foreign stock exchanges, but their thinking is slowly changing and they are considering the BSE given that there's enough capital, both at a domestic level and from foreign investors, which are boosting their presence," says Mengu.
Other banks, such as BCR or Raiffeisen, state they are preparing similar projects, including syndicated loans for firms, but no such project has materialised, yet.
In Mengu's opinion, lending is no longer a product in itself. "Our target is winning customers, and not a deal or another, and the most important element in such a strategy is consulting. Once we are able to provide high-quality consulting services, we stand to gain from all products," states Mengu.
He says the corporate market has matured in recent years, with customers becoming more selective and cost aware. Mengu believes, however, that Romanian firms are not sufficiently aware of the risks entailed by a type of financing or another, particularly when it comes to foreign currency.
Mengu states the corporate market is highly competitive now and there is no room for further interest rate decreases.
The new head of the corporate unit of HVB Tiriac Bank says UniCredit does not choose its customers depending on the economic sector they operate in. The group's expansion plans include the setting up of a car fleet management company. "The simp