Ghetea, CEC Bank: We're not set on boosting the loan volume endlessly

CEC Bank, the only large bank controlled by the state, in the first quarter granted corporate loans worth 90m euros and generated 3.7m-euro gross income. The largest part of financing was directed to the agricultural sector. Overall, 7,378 new loans were granted in the first quarter, with the average individual value thus standing at almost 51,000 RON (12,400 euros). However, sales of new loans barely covered repayments, so that the volume in March stood at the same level as in December last year, at 9.4bn RON (2.3bn euros). This happened amid the weak sales of loans on the retail segment, which lagged behind repayments. "We granted loans, but they replaced repaid loans. Our ambition is not to boost the volume endlessly, but to grant loans that can be subsequently paid back," says Radu Ghetea, CEC Bank chairman. Deposits attracted from clients registered sustained growth in the first quarter, with the amount climbing by almost 10%, to 15.1bn RON (3.7bn euros).