Banks with Bulgarian capitals will increase their influence on the banking market in 2012, UniCredit Bulbank has forecasted. Foreign financial institutions that had gained an 84% share on the Bulgarian market in terms of assets in 2009 have reduced it to 77% in 2011. UniCredit noted that a further decrease of their share to 75% was likely in 2012. The reshuffle is no surprise as such a tendency has been observed for the past 3 years. Last November a Bulgarian bank – First Investment Bank (Fibank) ousted Postbank as the fifth largest financial institution on the Bulgarian market. Thus the five major Banks operating in Bulgaria became UniCredit Bulbank, DSK Bank, United Bulgarian Bank, Raiffeisenbank and Fibank. Postbank was ranked sixth, followed by Corporate Commercial Bank (CCB). International Asset Bank that is assumed to be a bank with Bulgarian owners has outstripped Bulgarian American Credit Bank (BACB). Central Cooperative Bank occupies the 10th position, while the state-owned Bulgarian Development Bank (BDB) assumed the prestigious 14th position. Other banks with Bulgarian capitals are Investbank, Municipal Bank and Teximbank. These are the banks that are expected to issue 25% of credits in 2012. UniCredit Bulbank has also forecasted that the assets of the five largest Bulgarian financial institutions would be reduced below 50% of the total assets of the bank system for the first time in 2012. UniCredit’s Chief Economist Christofor Pavlov told Investor.bg this would happen mainly due to Greek banks operating in Bulgaria. UniCredit also expects that the growth of crediting would intensify to 3.1% in 2012, while there will be a particular slowdown for deposits.
Source: Monitor (20.01.2012)

Texim Bank already controls 100% of the investment fund Balkan Capital Management, it transpires from data in Commercial Register. The lender has bought the company from financial brokerage house Logos and investment intermediary Sofia International Securities, which had held 50% each. The newly acquired fund has a new name now – Texim Asset Management and has Apostol Apostolov on its board of directors. Apostolov is a former chairman of the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) and BSE-Sofia. Texim Asset Management runs four mutual funds with combined assets of BGN 9.7 mln. Most of its cash flow comes from the pension funds within the Chimimport group. The managing company’s 2011 profit was BGN 141, 000, and revenues reached BGN 258, 000.
Source: Capital (20.03.2012)

Finance Consulting, a debt collector related to Chimimport, has acquired one of the major mutual fund players in Bulgaria – BenchMark Asset Management and the latter now has a new name, management and headquarters. Finance Consulting has a vast portfolio of investments in local financial institutions, including an insurance company, a pension fund and a bank, running a total of BGN mln. Back in 2010, Finance Consulting acquired life insurer KD Life (now JZK Saglasie). It controls 19.95% of pension insurer Saglasie. It has recently bought a 19% stake in Teximbank. The company also hold shares in insurance player Saglasie ins broker and investment intermediary ABV Finance. Another connection to Chimimport lies in the fact that Finance Consulting has debts to Central Cooperative Bank.
Source: Standart (16.05.2012)

Central Depository chose four new members of its Board of directors on an extraordinary meeting. These are Apostol Apostolov-chairman of Private entrepreneurship bank Texim’s supervisory council, Ivan Takev- Bulgarian Stock Exchange’s executive director, Angel Rabadziiski – investment intermediary Karoll’s executive director and Teodora Angelova. In Central Depository’s new management solely Vasil Golemanski- Bulgarian Stock Exchange’s executive director remains. The main purpose remains privatization in package of both depositary and the stock exchange, which is hoped to happen by the end of the year. The new management has a term is five years.
Source: Darik Radio (22.05.2012)

Teximbank will become a publicly-owned company, it has emerged from the invitation for a general meeting in the Trade Register of the credit institution, which will be held on June 28. At present the bank does not plan to raised capital on the stock exchange. Thus, it may become one of the few public banks in Bulgaria. Teximbank will change its name from Private Entrepreneurial Bank Texim in Cyrillic to Texim Bank in Roman alphabet. The General Meeting is expected to adopt new regulations of the bank. “At present we do not plan raising capital on the stock exchange, but simply voting to make our bank a public company,” said Mr. Apostol Apostolov, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Teximbank. Last year it was revealed that 33% of Teximbank’s capital was owned by four companies. Part of them were related to the group around Chimimport.
Source: Capital (29.05.2012)

Teximbank preparing for a capital raise Sofia. Teximbank is planning a BGN 20 million capital raise, it transpires from an invitation for a general meeting of shareholders on 10 September published in the Commercial Register. The company would also become public once the capital raise is complete. The current capital of Teximbank is BGN 10 million. In the beginning of 2011 it transpired that 33% of Teximbank’s capital is owned by four companies, part of which are related to the Chimimport Group – Finance Consulting, Intrade, Datamax and Datamax System Holding. With he latest decision on a capital raise Teximbank followed the example of other financial institutions that undertook a similar step, among which First Investment Bank (Fibank), Corporate Commercial Bank (CCB), Central Cooperative Bank, Tokuda Bank and Investbank. According to its annual financial report the general capital adequacy ratio of Teximbank was 25.97% in end-2011.
Source: Capital (21.08.2012)

Bulgaria’s Texim Bank on Tuesday got regulatory clearance to launch an initial public offering (IPO) in which it would seek to raise 20 million levs ($13.1 million/10.2 million euro), the country's financial watchdog said. The bank will offer for subscription 20 million new shares with a sale price of 1.0 lev each, equal to their nominal value, the Financial Supervision Commission said in a statement. Texim Bank’s equity capital is divided into 10 million shares with a par value of 1.0 lev. It was the smallest bank by assets among 24 locally registered lenders in Bulgaria at the end of September.
Source: Capital (07.11.2012)