Petru Vaduva, the CEO appointed by Ion Tiriac, one of the richest local businessmen, to run his group during the most difficult period for the local business environment, says he is not considering starting a real estate project over the coming months and, as for car sales, the target is to contain the decline at -40% of 2008.

He says the three shock decisions that came almost at the same time were the freezing of financing by banks, the tightening of the lending conditions by the National Bank, as well as the depreciation of properties and of the RON during this period.

"Some dramatic effects related to financing occurred at the end of last year. From the relaxed lending policy we suddenly had a triple shock, which I can only compare to what I experienced in Russia. Not only did we go into a worldwide liquidity crisis and nobody wanted to give money any longer, but we also saw 30% depreciation. My potential buyers became 30% poorer overnight. Then there was also NBR’s decision to tighten lending norms. These are three things that rarely happen all in the same month," said Vaduva, Tiriac Holdings CEO.

He took the reins of the company at the beginning of this year after having lived through the Russian crisis at the end of the nineties, where he says the banking system was completely frozen for a few days, with no cash withdrawals possible.

Tiriac Holdings, a group that comprises Tiriac Auto, Tiriac Imobiliare, Tiriac Leasing, Tiriac Air and other smaller companies wherein Ion Tiriac is a majority or sole shareholder, posted growth in turnover in 2008 compared with the 1.6 billion euros of 2007, though below the 2 billion-euro estimate provided by its officials at the beginning of last year as a result of the worsening market conditions at the end of 2008.

Petru Vaduva, the CEO appointed by Ion Tiriac, one of the richest local busine