Fortis Bank posts strong profits despite heavy investment

"It is mainly due to the expansion on the small and medium-sized enterprises market. Within a year the loans for companies increased by 11%," explained Jan Bujak, the Fortis Bank president. Deposits increased by 9%. "We managed to obtain a 16% ROE. It is close to our assumptions. Cost to income ratio (C/I) stands at 54.5%," stated Bujak. The bank is still investing a lot. It has already opened four new outlets this year and plans to employ another 100 people, which means that total employment at the company will grow by over 10%. "Fortis Group wants to increase the share of the banks from new Europe in its revenues from 15% to 30% by 2009. It means that we also have to grow faster since our share in its revenues amounts to 1%," revealed Bujak. This is why the bank is working on a new strategy aimed at strengthening its position on the retail market. (Puls Biznesu, p. 8) E.B.