Setting out its Polish stall
Gerry Byrne, the head of Allied Irish Bank (AIB) in Poland, said BZ WBK, in which AIB has a 70.5 percent stake, may pay out more than 20 percent of its 2004 net profit as a dividend. BZ WBK will report its results this week.
"No strategic investor in the Polish banking sector is looking to depart-certainly we are not," said Byrne. "If an opportunity came up, we would seriously consider increasing our presence."
Byrne said AIB would consider merging BZ WBK with a similar-sized bank but would want to have at least 51 percent of the new entity.
He said that without a merger BZ WBK-a mid-sized lender with total market value of $2.3 (zł.7.05) billion-could raise its market share to 10 percent from the current six percent in five years.
Banking analysts have long predicted a wave of consolidation as weaker foreign investors bow out while others struggle to reach critical mass. AIB wants to see its unit raise its return on equity (ROE) to 20 percent-a level found only among the biggest lenders, such as PKO BP and Pekao SA.
The bank has said 2004 net profit will rise to zł.400 million from zł.129 million in 2003. (Reuters)
"No strategic investor in the Polish banking sector is looking to depart-certainly we are not," said Byrne. "If an opportunity came up, we would seriously consider increasing our presence."
Byrne said AIB would consider merging BZ WBK with a similar-sized bank but would want to have at least 51 percent of the new entity.
He said that without a merger BZ WBK-a mid-sized lender with total market value of $2.3 (zł.7.05) billion-could raise its market share to 10 percent from the current six percent in five years.
Banking analysts have long predicted a wave of consolidation as weaker foreign investors bow out while others struggle to reach critical mass. AIB wants to see its unit raise its return on equity (ROE) to 20 percent-a level found only among the biggest lenders, such as PKO BP and Pekao SA.
The bank has said 2004 net profit will rise to zł.400 million from zł.129 million in 2003. (Reuters)
