Sarajevo, 17. December 2018. – As of
October this year, ProCredit Bank BiH achieved a total growth of 10%.
With 16% of the market share, the Bank retained a leading position in the
business with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), while simultaneously
introducing itself to the retail market with a lot of innovations as a digital
bank whose services are adapted to contemporary trends. In the next year,
the planned growth of loan portfolio in the SME sector is around 15%, as said
today in the New Year’s interview with members of the Management Board of ProCredit
Bank Edin Hrnjica, President of the Management Board, Amel Agic and Amir
Salkanovic, members of the Bank’s Management Board, with the representatives of
the Bosnian media.
Leaders in SME sector
ProCredit Bank remains
committed to the development of the BiH economy, and sees the SME sector as the
most important driver of development in terms of opening new jobs and boosting
exports. As of the end of October this year, the Bank realized growth of
10% and strengthened the quality of its loan portfolio. It is important
to mention that ProCredit has also recorded a strong growth in the loan
portfolio on the group level.
Particular emphasis was placed on
the so-called green portfolio which is supporting investments that are
environmentally and socially responsible. Thus, in the course of the
year, the green portfolio made up to 17.1% of the total portfolio of the bank,
while green investment loans had a share of 26.5% in the total investment loans
portfolio.
ProCredit Bank
has also continued to provide clients with affordable credit and guarantee
lines of the European Investment Fund and the European Investment Bank in 2018.
These warranty lines offer significant benefits to small and medium
enterprises, not only in a commercial sense, but also through the reduction of
collateral coverage, which is recognized by clients as a major benefit.
This is also emphasized by the fact that in 2018. alone, 66 million
BAM was placed in the market from guarantee lines and used by around 200
companies. In the next year, successful cooperation with European
partners is planned in order to enable Bank’s clients to have a simpler access
to more favorable guarantee and credit lines.
The Bank is still pioneering in
digitalization processes since by end of August 2018, 100% of transactions were
made via electronic channels and 24/7 zone. From September 2018. there’s
no cash in the branches of the bank which is all part of the so-called cashless
business model.
Private Individuals
Significant
results have also been achieved with new, unique service for private individuals
which focuses on retail business. The Bank has come up with an innovative
offer containing a set of services for individuals with exceptional benefits in
the domain of payment (20 free payments), free BAM and EUR conversions, and
free three cash withdrawals with contactless Mastercard debit card at other
banks ATMs throughout B&H, etc.. It is worth pointing out that this
offer is designed for all clients who want autonomy in performing banking
transactions and equal treatment in terms of priority.
The
Bank continues to invest in improving the PCB Direct online platform for private
individuals that provides an online application for services, as well as
information on the current offers for private individuals.
It’s worth mentioning that one of
the biggest advantages of the bank is digital business, which includes ATMs in BAM
and EUR currency, the possibility of performing all banking transactions in
24/7 zones, and the fact that ProCredit is the only bank that provides the
possibility to use all services cashlessly. Promoting the savings culture on
the one hand, as well as the responsibility in lending in terms of not
promoting and offering cash and consumer loans on the other, the bank has
developed the concept of simple and flexible savings services. In
addition, the bank uses these savings funds for placing SMEs on investment in
projects that strengthen the economy and generate new jobs.
Estimations for 2019.
Despite the numerous challenges
our clients face and we, as an institution along with them, starting from an
unstable political situation, migration of the population and the workforce,
high taxes, etc.. , our plan is to further strengthen the market position as a
leader in business with SMEs, with a special emphasis on support for exporters,
then supporting importers through stimulation in terms of outflows and inflows
from abroad, support for financing through guarantee funds and generally continuing
the overall commitment of SMEs sector as the carrier of the country’s economy.
In this context, the growth of credit portfolio in small and medium-sized
enterprises is planned to be around 15% in 2019. Bearing in mind the
strategic orientation of the bank and the group when it comes to this segment,
we will give special emphasis to the development of
the so-called. "Green" investments with a reach of 20% of the
total portfolio in this sector.
Also, the continuation of the
implementation of the new concept towards individuals is the strategic
commitment of the bank in this segment and in the following year.
Efforts to create a digital bank have been fruitful. The
introduction of a unique service that implements the entire set of services to
individuals from invoicing, domestic payments, e-banking and a card allowing
three free cash withdrawals at all ATMs in the country, all at a single price,
has proven to be revolutionary. The insistence on not promoting consumer
banking appealed with the clients since it differs from what our market typically
offers – consumer lending to citizens. Therefore, in 2019. Bank
plans to increase the deposits of private individuals by about 20%.
Furthermore, ProCredit Bank
continues to promote direct banking as something that we already recognize on
the market and beyond. By introducing 100% automation and complete discontinuation
of cash operations, and the flexibility our e-banking provides in terms of
asset management is an additional step forward. The plan is to improve
the new m-banking application in 2019. in
order to answer all the requirements that an average customer can have in the
mobile banking service. Also, the introduction of mobile payment is
planned somewhere near the end of 2019. Special attention has been paid
to the security aspects at all levels in line with the most up-to-date
standards available today in this field, according to a statement by ProCredit
Bank BiH regarding the New Year’s interview with journalists, representatives
of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian media.
About
ProCredit Bank B&H
ProCredit Bank was the first
international bank to come to Bosnia, which had already been hardly recovering
from the then-war-ravaged Bosnia. In 1997 ProCredit Group saw the
possibility of development and sent their experts who, by analyzing the market
at that time, offered a solution in the form of financing small businessmen.
Over the years, the bank specialized in small and medium-sized
enterprises, which are at the same time a real generator of economic
development, operating regularly, timely settling their obligations, hiring new
employees, improving the quality of life of the community, exporting, etc..
Today, ProCredit Bank operates with strong, stable and recognizable B&H
companies. For years, ProCredit Bank has made extraordinary efforts to
enable them to access the necessary means for business improvement, so today we
offer our clients access to credit lines with much lower interest rates and
guarantee lines that significantly reduce the requirements for collateral
coverage. For a while now, the Bank offers financing through the credit /
guarantee lines of the European Union, the World Bank and USAID. Also, in order
to encourage exports of domestic businesses, ProCredit Bank offers the best
prices for international payment transactions, where payments are specifically
made to sister banks in the ProCredit Group, 2. 5 euros per transaction.
ProCredit Bank B&H is part of the ProCredit Group based in Frankfurt,
Germany. The Bank is in absolute ownership of ProCredit Holding, the parent
company of ProCredit Group. Shareholders of ProCredit Holding include
strategic investors, Zeitinger Invest and ProCredit Staff Invest and renowned
names such as DOEN, KfW and IFC (a part of the World Bank Group). More informtion
available on www.procreditbank.ba.