Takarék group launches new commercial bank

Takarékbank, the new universal commercial bank of Hungary’s integrated savings cooperatives, launched on Monday with 139 branches in seven of Hungary’s 19 counties as well as the capital.

The lender, created from the merger of Mohácsi Savings Bank, Pannon Savings Bank and B3 Savings Cooperative, has more than 140,000 retail and 28,000 corporate clients.

The ratio of agribusinesses among the corporate clients stands close to 10 percent. Takarékbank also serves 173 local councils.

By the end of October, eleven more savings cooperatives as well as Takarék Commercial Bank, formerly called FHB Bank, will merge with Takarékbank, giving it more than 1 million clients and lifting its total assets over 2,300 billion forints (EUR 7bn). With 750 branches, it will have the country’s largest banking network.

Takarék group, which, in addition to Takarékbank, counts eleven regional savings cooperatives, Magyar Takarékszövetkezeti Bank (MTB) and savings cooperative integrator SZHISZ among its members, has total assets of close to 2,500 billion forints.

Its market share is over 6.5 percent, making it the fourth-biggest banking group in Hungary.

Source: MTI