Piraeus Bank SA announced on Wednesday that it concluded a strategic agreement with Intrum regarding the establishment of a credit management servicer in Greece.
The new servicer company, established on September 16, is 80 pct owned by Intrum, with Piraeus Bank retaining a 20 pct equity stake. The new servicer is licensed and regulated by the Bank of Greece. It will service the Piraeus Bank's existing Non Performing Exposures (NPE) and Real Estate Owned Assets (REO) portfolio, together with any new inflows, on an exclusive basis, and will be able to manage also other NPE and REO portfolios in the Greek market. Assets and proceeds of the serviced portfolio remain on the bank's balance sheet.
The transaction was concluded after receiving the required approvals from the relevant regulatory authorities, including the Bank of Greece, as well as the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund.
Christos Megalou, Piraeus Bank CEO, said, "The execution of the strategic agreement with Intrum in just four-and-a-half months indicates the agility and efficiency of Piraeus Bank. We are greatly encouraged by Intrum's investment in Greece, which demonstrates a strong confidence vote in the prospects of the recovering Greek economy. Both Piraeus and Intrum support the customers that face difficulties in servicing their debt, and aim at finding mutually beneficial and viable solutions. The strategic agreement is expected to further facilitate the NPE derisking strategy of Piraeus Bank."