Tag: EBRD

EBRD: Ottoman times

May 10, 2013 3:59pm by Daniel Dombey

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Smiles all round on the faces of those officials of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development who successfully lobbied for their role to be broadened from their traditional stamping grounds in eastern Europe to Turkey, North Africa and beyond.

As any visitor to the organisation’s annual meeting in Istanbul on Friday would have seen, top officials from the likes of Poland, Ukraine and Russia were notable for their absence. But there to fill the gap were the prime ministers of Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan, not to mention the host, Turkey’s premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In the ex-Communist bloc, the EBRD is now old hat. In and around the Mediterranean, it still makes news. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD Posted in Egypt, Global, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia | Permalink

EBRD: sharpish cut in forecasts

May 10, 2013 10:05am by Stefan Wagstyl

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Rarely has a forecast been cut so fast. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development on Friday slashed its 2013 growth forecast for the emerging economies of central and eastern Europe and North Africa from 3.1 per cent in January to just 2.2 per cent.

While the effects of the eurozone crisis have abated, economic activity is slowing faster than expected in the region’s biggest two markets – Russia and Poland. Structural reforms are needed, and needed now, says the bank. But it always says that. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD, economy, eurozone Posted in Europe, Poland, Russia, Turkey | Permalink

Hungary: Simor finds a safe haven

Mar 27, 2013 11:48am by Stefan Wagstyl

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András Simor, the hawkish former governor of Hungary’s central bank who stepped down this month, has quickly found a new perch.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development announced on Wednesday that Simor would take a top job as vice president for policy, starting July 1. Based in London, he will be a comfortable distance from Budapest and his arch-critic prime minister Viktor Orbán, whose close ally, György Matolcsy, has been installed in Simor’s office at the central bank. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD, Hungary economy, Hungary politics Posted in Hungary | Permalink

Guest post: safeguarding nuclear’s role in Ukrainian energy

Mar 13, 2013 5:33pm by beyondbrics

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By Riccardo Puliti of the EBRD

The use of nuclear power generates at least as much debate as electricity.

This is especially true in the case of Ukraine, where in 1986 the Chernobyl accident happened. The events demonstrated that in nuclear power generation safety always must be the utmost priority – from the first moment of operation to long after the active life of any nuclear reactor. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD, nuclear power, Ukraine energy Posted in Ukraine | Permalink

CEE: EBRD sees glimmers of hope

Jan 21, 2013 12:11pm by Stefan Wagstyl

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At last, a breath of optimism on central and eastern Europe from one of the more cautious economic forecasters.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development on Monday predicted that growth in the region would increase slightly from 2.6 per cent in 2012 to 3.1 per cent this year. More significantly, given the EBRD’s past warnings, the bank is saying that risks of the eurozone triggering another CEE financial crisis are declining. If the bank’s right, that’s good news. Continue reading »

Tags: CEE economy, EBRD, eurozone crisis Posted in Europe | Permalink

Poland’s Getin Bank: better balance

Dec 24, 2012 11:05am by Jan Cienski

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Poland’s banks are generally well financed and solid, but one of their biggest problems is a mismatch between short-term deposits and long-term loans, many of which are denominated in foreign currency – largely Swiss francs. The mismatch has been a concern for regulators, who have pushed banks to make their asset structure less vulnerable to sudden changes in sentiment and to any turmoil in the eurozone.

Now Getin Noble Bank, one of the most aggressive forex lenders during the real estate boom which ended in 2008, has taken a step towards better balancing its assets by securitising a 1bn zlotys ($325m) portfolio of 33,000 car loans last week. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD, local currency bonds, Poland banks, securitisation Posted in Europe, Poland | Permalink

EBRD to Russia: diversify

Dec 14, 2012 3:31pm by Isabel Gorst

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Russia has talked a lot about economic diversification over the past two decades but it has made little progress in weaning itself off revenues from natural resources. A new report by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development sets out recommendations that might stimulate industrial modernization and tries to make sense of Russia’s abiding addiction to oil. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD, oil & gas, R&D, reform Posted in Europe, Russia | Permalink

Guest post: big energy schemes need multilateral finance

Oct 4, 2012 10:01am by beyondbrics

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By Riccardo Puliti of the EBRD

Every autumn, as the cold weather approaches, Europe remembers the gas wars of 2009 when Russian gas – on which some countries are almost entirely dependent – stopped flowing via Ukraine.

But these days gas is good news. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD, energy, guest post, oil & gas, shale Posted in Europe, Poland | Permalink

EBRD to Greece: please call the helpline

Sep 10, 2012 5:00pm by Stefan Wagstyl

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Will the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the bank set up to assist the former Communist countries of eastern Europe, soon be helping Greece? Maybe.

But it won’t be offering money. Just advice. Now you might thank that Athens is up to ears in foreigners bringing financial advice. But, no. It seems that the Greek government has invited a team of EBRD bankers to visit Athens next month – and the EBRD is happy to oblige. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD, Greek debt crisis Posted in Europe | Permalink

EBRD trims CEE growth

Jul 25, 2012 3:39pm by Andrew Bowman

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More downward GDP revisions, this time from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The culprit: concern over the spreading impact of the eurozone crisis.

The EBRD slashed its overall growth forecasts for 29 countries from central Europe to central Asia. The region’s growth is now estimated to be 2.7 per cent in 2012, down from growth of 4.6 per cent in 2011. Continue reading »

Tags: CEE, EBRD, GDP Posted in Europe, Russia | Permalink

Ukraine: good job co-hosting the football, but what next?

Jun 30, 2012 8:12pm by Yuri Bender

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Foreign visitors, numbering up to a million during Euro 2012, appear to have been left with an overwhelmingly positive impression of tournament co-host Ukraine. But international financial institutions look likely to need more convincing before they re-ignite their once intimate relationship with the developing nation.

Ukraine’s largest financial investor, the EBRD, has committed €7.5bn to the country since 1992, invested across 294 projects, including badly needed pre-tournament upgrades of transport in host cities Kiev and Lviv. Yet both the EBRD and IMF are calling for major political and legal reform if they are once more to step up commitments. Continue reading »

Tags: cross border investment, EBRD, Euro 2012, IMF, reform Posted in Europe, Ukraine | Permalink

Chinese group buys Georgian bank

Jun 11, 2012 3:35pm by Stefan Wagstyl

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A pioneering Chinese company is planning to buy a bank in Georgia – and become, it says, the first privately-owned Chinese group to buy a foreign bank. At around $100m, it’s a small deal for China but a pretty big one for investment-hungry Georgia – and for Xinjiang Hualing Industry and Trade Group.

The company, founded in the far western city of Urumqi in 1988, is in the process of securing regulatory approval to acquire 90 per cent of Basisbank, Georgia’s 11th largest bank in terms of assets. Continue reading »

Tags: banking, Basisbank, China-Europe, EBRD, Xinjiang Hualing Posted in China, Europe, Georgia | Permalink

EBRD election: who’s next for a free vote?

May 19, 2012 3:12pm by Neil Buckley

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So the EBRD has a new, British, president, breaking the Franco-German stranglehold on the institution and elected for the first time through an open competition. Will the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and other multilateral bodies now come under pressure to do the same?

Well, possibly. Sir Suma Chakrabarti, the winning candidate, said after his victory the “open, fair and merit-based process has been a credit to the Bank and to all the other candidates”. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD Posted in Europe | Permalink

British president for EBRD [updated]

May 18, 2012 5:57pm by beyondbrics

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EBRD shareholders on Friday elected Sir Suma Chakrabarti as the new president of the Bank for the next four years – official announcement from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD Posted in Europe | Permalink

CEE: a bit of sun amid the clouds

May 18, 2012 3:56pm by Stefan Wagstyl

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Amid all the gloom at the European Bank for Reconstruction’s annual meeting, there was a bit of sunshine from Italy’s UniCredit, which has extensive central and east European operations.

‘Credit crunch? What credit crunch?’ was the message in a 27-page presentation. Continue reading »

Tags: EBRD, UniCredit Posted in Global | Permalink

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Tag: EBRD

EBRD: Ottoman times

EBRD: sharpish cut in forecasts

Hungary: Simor finds a safe haven

Guest post: safeguarding nuclear’s role in Ukrainian energy

CEE: EBRD sees glimmers of hope

Poland’s Getin Bank: better balance

EBRD to Russia: diversify

Guest post: big energy schemes need multilateral finance

EBRD to Greece: please call the helpline

EBRD trims CEE growth

Ukraine: good job co-hosting the football, but what next?

Chinese group buys Georgian bank

EBRD election: who’s next for a free vote?

British president for EBRD [updated]

CEE: a bit of sun amid the clouds

BB: time to register

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