POSTBANK, 96.74-per-cent owned by Greece's EFG Eurobank Ergasias, on March 26 acquired local credit company Bulgarian Retail Services (BRS), which issues Euroline cards.
BRS is a subsidiary of Greece's Eurobank Cards S.A, which is part of EFG Eurobank Ergasias.
The consolidation will not affect Euroline card holders as they will continue to be able to make purchases at retail outlets that accept Euroline cards, draw cash and make payments at branches of Postbank, said the BRS and Postbank. Clients who do not want to continue using Euroline cards after the consolidation, should inform Postbank.
BRS launched in Bulgaria in 2003 and has issued 180 000 credit cards until now. Euroline cards are accepted in 3700 outlets throughout the country. Among BRS partners are major Bulgarian household appliance and audio-video hypermarkets, 60 computer retailers, 30 travel agencies, fitness gyms, beauty parlours and perfumery shops.
The consolidation is a part of Postbank's plans to expand its activity in Bulgaria. It came only two weeks after the bank announced the launch of a second leasing company on the Bulgarian market.
The car-leasing firm EFG Auto Leasing, a subsidiary of Postbank, offers financial and operational leasing schemes for all types of vehicles, as well as sub-leasing for corporate and individual clients. The company distributes its products via the branch network of Postbank and through mutual programmes with various car dealers.
Postbank is the seventh-largest Bulgarian bank by assets and has 30 branches and 90 representative offices across Bulgaria.
The bank launched its first leasing subsidiary EFG Leasing last November, making in-roads into the leasing market, which has been faced with increased competition from the local loan market in the past two years. EFG Leasing, which offers leasing for industrial, transport, commercial, construction, medical, agricultural and other equipment, has a portfolio of 10 million leva.