Southern comfort

In January this year, BRE Bank declared its plans to enter the Czech and Slovak internet-banking markets. Although BRE Bank's plans are already at an advanced stage and it has even started taking on employees for the projects, few details of the investment have been disclosed until recently.

It is now clear that BRE Bank will launch internet banks in the Czech Republic and Slovakia based on its Polish internet arm, Mbank. The banks will be launched under the brand "Mbanka" and will begin operating in the second half of this year.

BRE Bank estimates that the costs of the investment will not be significant, as IT solutions will be taken directly from existing technology used by Mbank. Moreover, as the banks will be operating in EU countries, they will not require licenses from the host countries. BRE Bank CEO Sławomir Lachowski expects the banks will start generating profits in three or four years' time.

Mbanka's business model will be based on that of Mbank as well, which, apart from its internet site, has 15 financial-service centers and 50 "Mkiosks" located in shopping centers.

"We will adjust [the model] to the needs of the southern clients," says Piotr Gawron, director of BRE Bank's electronic-banking department. The services to be offered in Poland's southern neighbors will include debit accounts and loans. Moreover, the firm plans to attract clients by offering to open accounts for free.

Mbank has been operating in Poland since 2000. At present, it has over 1.3 million clients and about 1.9 million accounts. The company's capital assets reach zł.7.5 billion.