The European financial services industry announced a 3% year-on-year fall in M&A deals in 2023, with 641 deals across the region, compared to 661 deals in 2022, according to the latest EY financial services M&A analysis. The total disclosed deal value also fell; from €50.0bn in 2022 to €34.7bn in 2023, representing the lowest annual value recorded since 2013. Iulia Bratu, Partner, Head of Lead Advisory, EY Romania: “M&A activity in the Romanian Financial Services sector saw a strong year in 2023, recording 14 transactions, with disclosed-value deals accounting for 10.2% of the total market, at USD 490m. This represented a doubling of the transaction number and 210% increase in deal values and was a particularly positive performance from an historical perspective, supported by landmark transactions in the banking segment such as the sales of Alpha Bank and First Bank’s Romanian operations (USD 319m and USD 138m, respectively). Financial Services M&A within the local market is likely to continue its positive dynamics in 2024, with another milestone transaction such as Banca Transilvania’s acquisition of Hungarian lender OTP’s Romanian operations expected to be announced in the first part of the year.” Sector-specific M&A activity across Europe’s financial markets • The number of European insurance deals rose from 223 in 2022 to 240 in 2023, but the total publicly disclosed deal value halved year-on-year, falling from €18.8bn in 2022 to €9.4bn in 2023. • The number of deals in the European wealth and asset management industry in 2023 was on par with the 206 in 2022. However, again, the total publicly disclosed deal value decreased year-on-year; from €6.6bn in 2022 to €4.9bn in 2023. • In the European banking sector, there were 195 deals in 2023, down from 232 in 2022, with the total publicly disclosed deal value also decreasing year-on-year from €24.6bn to €20.4bn. The number of non-European firms acquiring European targets was down from 96 in 2022 to 81 in 2023, and the total disclosed deal value fell from €18.5bn in 2022 to €17.1bn year-on-year. European firms acquiring targets from other markets fell from 62 in 2022 to 47 in 2023, with total disclosed deal value decreasing from €7.0bn to €2.9bn year-on-year.
Low-cost carrier Wizz Air announced three new routes from Bucharest, two additional aircraft, and a permanent base that will be established in the Romanian capital at the Băneasa Airport. The new base will open starting April 1, 2025. The move will see the airline increase its Bucharest fleet to 21 aircraft. "Bucharest is of crucial importance […]
Shopping center developer Argo Capital sold Shopping City Suceava in northeastern Romania to M Core for an undisclosed sum. The property offers a leasable area of 43,100 square meters, hosting over 100 retailers. According to real estate consultancy company iO Partners, which advised Argo Capital, this marks the largest transaction in the past five years […]
“Language Buddy,” a project launched in the city of Brașov, aims to support young migrants and refugees in learning the Romanian language. The same project trains students as mentors in intercultural pedagogy. “Language Buddy” is a model simultaneously implemented in eight European countries (Greece, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Spain, Portugal, Malta, and Austria) and is based […]
President Klaus Iohannis and prime minister Marcel Ciolacu reaffirmed Romania’s intention to combat anti-Semitism and promote the memory of Holocaust victims with the occasion of the International Day of Commemoration of the victims of the Holocaust. The head of the Romanian executive attended the ceremony dedicated to the international day and the remembrance of the […]
Bucharest, Ilfov, and Timiș emerged as the regions with the highest number of registered mortgages in Romania in 2024, followed by Iași and Constanța. According to an analysis conducted by online broker Ipotecare.ro and financial consultant and mortgage lending company SVN Credit Romania, roughly 86,600 mortgages were recorded nationwide last year, marking a 26.5% increase […]
Crevedia Retail Park, one of the largest strip malls in Romania, with a total leasable area of 11,400 sqm, opened on the Bucharest-Târgoviște road close to Bucharest on Monday, January 27. The total investment, by REPACO Capital and its partner Weststar Real Estate, amounts to EUR 15 million, partly co-financed by Banca Transilvania through an investment […]
