AIG aims at 10% market share through leasing firm deal

US financial group AIG is reported to be holding negotiations on the purchase of a stake in three Polish leasing companies. According to Rzeczpospolita, the three are Carcade, Centrum Leasingu i Finansow (CLiF), and Poznan's WCL Herbico, with a combined market share in 2000 of 10%. Unnamed sources quoted by Rzeczpospolita say that AIG is hoping to acquire up to 49% of each of the three companies, with the aim of establishing at least a 10% share of Poland's leasing market. AIG's move comes at a time when Poland's private leasing companies are facing difficulties as a result of a more rigorous credit policy adopted by the banks. In the first six months of the year, the value of the contracts settled by Carcade fell by 82%. In the case of CLiF the decline was 27%, and for WCL Herbico, it was 51%. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B7) A.K.