Ministry of Finance cancels lucrative T-bond deal with CDM Pekao SA

The Ministry of Finance has cancelled its agreement with leading retail bank CDM Pekao SA for conducting the sale of treasury bonds. As a consequence, the bank's annual revenue may drop by as much as one fifth. The official reason for the agreement's cancellation, according to the Ministry of Finance, was insufficient development of distribution points and a decrease in the network of customer service offices. In practice, bond sales are run in such a way that the leader (to date Pekao SA) chooses brokerage houses and then controls them. In the last few years of co-operation the number of customer service offices has dropped from 564 in 2000 to 503 at present. Also, distribution via the Internet accounted for only 1-2% of total sales, whereas the Ministry of Finance had hoped for much more. But unofficial sources claim that, by cancelling the agreement, the Ministry wanted to punish Pekao SA for its refusal to reduce the debt of the Szczecin Shipyard. The majority of analysts think that this profitable contract will be taken by BDM PKO BP, Poland's state-owned bank. (Parkiet, p.1) A.L.