The negotiations by which an US-based financial group, Merchant's Bank of California, was supposed to buy the Romania-based Romanian International Bank (RIB), indirectly held by the Turkish State, have come to a standstill, sources on the Romanian banking market say.
"The deal seems to have fallen through," the quoted source said. After having agreed on most of the details of the deal, the Turkish authorities came up with a last minute condition, deemed as unacceptable by the Americans at Merchant's Bank of California.
Most of the negotiations over RIB were conducted in Turkey. The National Bank of Romania was notified by the American group of its plans to buy RIB. The Romanian International Bank is indirectly held by the Turkish Sumerbank Group (99.7%).
Following the crisis that ravaged the financial market in Turkey, the group was taken over by the Turkish State in the first half of this year, which now has to sell the bank in Romania, as well.
Broadhurst Investment Fund, conducting business of over $200 million in Romania, has also shown interest in Romanian International Bank.
The success registered by other Turkish financial groups on the Romanian market in 1993-1995 prompted Sumerbank to join them in Bucharest.
RIB became operational in 1998, with the Turkish investors announcing they had big plans for investments and expansion.
RIB has started its activity in an extremely aggressive way, launching several new products, among which the first credit card aimed at natural persons. However, the bank's expansion strategy failed, because its main shareholders started facing problems in Turkey.
The banking activities developed in Bucharest were placed under conservation, and only the minimal operations needed for remaining on the market were maintained. AT the end of last year, RIB held 0.199% of the Romanian banking system.
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