Spain''''''''s largest bank Santander yesterday said it expects Millennium BCP, Portugal''''''''s largest private bank, to win the auction for BCR and pay 3.8 billion euros ($4.55 billion) for the purchase. "We firmly believe that BCP will win the auction for BCR and that it will pay 3.8 billion euros for the 62% stake on offer," Santander said in a research note.
The new owner of the largest bank in Romania is to be announced at 19.00 today by Finance Minister Sebastian Vladescu, the chairman of the BCR''''''''s privatisation committee, at the headquarters of the State Assets Resolution Authority (AVAS).
He will announce the name of the winner of the tender for the biggest privatisation in Romania''''''''s history, choosing between Austrian bank Erste and the Portuguese bank Millennium. The highest bidder from the two will be selected to buy the 61.88% in BCR. Those who really stand to gain from the sale of the controlling interests in BCR, a deal estimated at over 3bn euros, are EBRD and IFC, which became shareholders in the bank two years ago: for their 25% plus-two-shares stake they will now get about six times the money they invested, which is actually more than the two institutions have invested in Romania over the last 15 years.
The final bids will be opened in the presence of the Privatisation Committee members, the Erste and Millennium representatives, the consultants for the state and the two investors, with the press also invited to attend.
The privatisation contract will be signed on December 21, in the presence of Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu.
The representatives of the two banks had eight days to submit improved financial bids, after having reached an agreement with the state regarding the final version of the privatisation contract.
The money will be transferred by the BCR buyer into an escrow account opened abroad.
Yesterday, the chairmen of the five financial investment companies (SIF) that own 30% in BCR were invited to the Government''''''''s headquarters at 16.00 to discuss the privatisation contract.
"I do not know what we will be talking about. I got a fax from the government inviting me for a discussion to clarify some aspects regarding BCR''''''''s privatisation," one of the SIF chairmen told ZIARUL FINANCIAR.
The SIFs have a protocol concluded with the State Assets Resolution Authority (AVAS) that stipulates a series of requirements to be set in the privatisation contract. "The protocol includes the provision about listing the bank on the Stock Exchange," the chairman of the same SIF stated.
"BCR''''''''s statute stipulates that important decisions about the bank can only be made by a majority of 75%, which would not allow the winner of the privatisation race to have full control over the bank, given that it is to take over some 62%. What we will insist on is having the privatisation contract presented to us," the quoted source added.
According to information on the market, the SIFs requested the bank''''''''s dividend policy to be set for the next few years, so that they would not lose their most important source of income of recent years. adrian.mirsanu@zf.ro
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