Treasury Ministry set to take key decision on bank BGŻ

Treasury Ministry representatives have announced that a decision on rising the capital of bank BGŻ by zł. 500 million will be taken in November. "The most important point is to reach the goals set in the restructuring program. It means that the bank's capital must be enlarged by zł. 1 billion by mid 2005, and half of this sum must be obtained by June 2004. That is why we are talking to the remaining shareholders of BGŻ, who are mostly cooperative banks and fear this move," said Deputy Treasury Minister Barbara Misterska-Dragan. "We are close to reaching an agreement with the State Treasury. We have set several conditions, the most important of which refers to the possibility of selling BGŻ shares to a new investor," said president of Gospodarczy Bank Wielkopolski, Andrzej Chmielecki. Krzysztof Ksyta from Mazowiecki Bank Regionalny underlined that cooperative banks must have the right to sell their shares in BGŻ at a price at least equal to that which an a new investor would pay for the new shares. (Puls Biznesu, p. 6) M.K.