Homes-new giants of Sofia Initiated apartments in Sofia are twice as much as in 2015. In the last 12 months in the capital city projects for buildings with built up area of nearly 1.2 million square meters were started, which is by more than 50% more as compared to the previous year. Among the largest projects that got building permits last year are predominantly residential complexes. As compared to 2015 the previous year is distinguished with initiated construction of larger variety of areas. In the present 2016 growth in residential construction is again expected not only in Sofia, but also in the entire country. Main engines of acceleration will remain large cites, and more promptly Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas. Projects whose constriction was initiated are not only more in number, but are also significantly larger as compared to the previous 5-6 years. Growth in residential construction again stands strong, as the acceleration reached 97% based on the previous year in square meters built-up area. Mladost stands out among locations with potential for residential complexes. Scanwel Bulgaria is Building Tera residential complex in Mladost 4, as it expects to sell homes there at prices of EUR 730-780 per square meter. In the group of large projects of high class is located at the foot of Vitosha Mountain Royal Park Residence. The so-called park residential complex of closed type is with minimum contruction-20% density. The complex is composed of seven buildings with just 42 apartments and seven boutique penthouses. Among initiated luxurious projects is Tintqva gardens in Izgrev neighbourhood. Among the largest started projects of 2014 is Flora park-residential complex-stage 4. As of November 2015 Flora park is sold at 80%. In the list of colossal projects was the initiated in 2015 residential complex Sofia Park Villas. It is located at a key place close to Residential Park Sofia, Business Park Sofia è and newly-constructedå Sofia Park and is consisted of 35 one-family houses. Prices in the complex start from EUR 450 thousand.
Source: Capital (15.01.2016)

CEE economies move forward to more sustainable growth model Italy's UniCredit Group said on Wednesday that most Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) economies showed strong economic growth in 2015, moving forward to a more sustainable growth model. In 2015, CEE economies have shown resilience against shifts in investors' sentiment towards emerging markets, which was in good part related to their deep integration with the euro area and the solid macroeconomic fundamentals, UniCredit Group said in a statement summarizing a CEE Banking Study which covers 13 different countries. Banking sectors in most countries have remained profitable, with future economic recovery expected to further support lending, especially in countries which have been lagging behind so far, the lender said. Non-performing loans ratios, which are currently high in various countries should decline. Moreover positive GDP growth in combination with accommodative monetary policies and clean-up activities in countries such as Romania, Slovenia and Hungary should ease the strain from NPLs, while profitability is expected to remain above Western European levels, UniCredit noted. "A more sustainable funding model is moving forward in CEE, with local deposits becoming a more important funding source. Nevertheless banks need to be attentive towards the low interest environment, regulatory pressures, the development of emerging markets, geopolitical tensions and the effects from migration," Carlo Vivaldi, Head of CEE Division at UniCredit, was quoted in the statement as saying. With GDP growth rates ranging from 0.6% in Serbia to 4.3% in the Czech Republic in 2015, most CEE countries have shown a more dynamic performance compared to previous years. The only exceptions are Russia, which had to cope with a sharp drop in the oil price and the EU-US sanctions, and Ukraine, UniCredit said. On the other hand, EU-members in Central Europe (EU-CEE) have proved more resilient to the shift in investors' sentiment towards emerging markets in the second half 2015. "In doing so, EU-CEE benefitted from current account surpluses or small deficits due to strong exports into the euro area, low commodity prices and large capital account surpluses due to EU fund inflows," it commented. In terms of UniCredit's placement in the CEE region, the bank added that in spite of some challenges, it considers itself a long-term, strategic investor in Central and Eastern Europe. "In 2015 the banking group has acquired over 1.2 million new customers across all CEE countries, where it has a presence, and it intends to grow its customer base by another 1 million customers each year until 2018," the lender said. The banking group operates an extensive network of almost 3,100 branches in 13 countries, which generates roughly one quarter of its total revenues.
Source: investor.bg (21.01.2016)

Bulgarian banks' combined net profit rises to EUR 459 mln in 2015 The combined net profit of Bulgarian banks amounted to BGN 898 million in 2015, up by BGN 152 million as compared to a year earlier, the country's central bank said. The local banks continued to implement steps to reduce the credit risk in their balance sheets as by the end of December the gross amount of bad loans and advance payments in the banking system totalled BGN 11.026 billion. The banks' total assets stood at BGN 87.5 billion at the end of December, as their liquid assets ratio increased to 36.71%. The banks' deposits portfolio totalled BGN 74.4 billion at the end of 2015. Twenty-eight banks and branches of foreign banks operate in Bulgaria.
Source: Dnevnik (02.02.2016)

Who are the winners of the awards for responsible business The Bulgarian Business Leaders Forum (BBLF) presented its annual awards for responsible business in 2015. The thirteenth edition of the initiative saw 63 companies that competed for awards with a total of 93 projects with a social focus. The award for "Investor in Society" was awarded to Nova Broàdcasting Group. Winner in the category "Investor in Knowledge" is Telerik. As an "Investor in Human Capital and Working Conditions" in this year's competition the jury honored UniCredit Bulbank and the Council of Business Women in Bulgaria. "Investor in Environment" in 2015 became the cement plant Devnya Cement, which is part of the Italian group Italcementi. The prize for "Cause-related Marketing" is awarded to Avon Cosmetics Bulgaria for the second consecutive year. In the category "Best Social Policy of Small and Medium Enterprise" the winner is pharmaceutical AbbVie. Winner of the special reward “Engage” for employee engagement in socially responsible projects, awarded by the International Business Leaders Forum - Britain, became Address Real Estate.
Source: Capital (29.02.2016)

Creditor selling recycling machine of Plamen Stoyanov Dambovetsa Equipment for recycling of Ecometal Engineering, which is owned by Plamen Stoyanov, is sold by a lender. The reason is non-performing lease obligation. Machines for sale costed about BGN 10 million nine years ago and now are available for about half of this sum, i.e. BGN 5-6 million. Ecometal Engineering, which owns a base for processing of old vehicles and other equipment in the Sofia district of Kremikovtzi, has outstanding receivables to other creditor - UniCredit Bulbank, which in February also put a distraint over the shares of the owner. The advertisement of the seller, successor of the leasing company Hypo Alpe Adria, Heth Asset Resolution, does not specify the asked price. The owner of Ecometal Plamen Stoyanov does not answer his mobile phone for comment, but the financial data of the company and recent distraint show difficulties that are apparently the reason for the current auction. Again according to unofficial information, the delay in payments is not new, but for at least two years. Ecometal Engineering deals with the processing of scrap metal, discarded automobiles, electrical and electronic equipment. The company owns the slag heaps of Kremikovtzi and specializes in the processing of slag (waste) from the steel industry. According to information from its last published report for 2014, the company has shredding plant of the German company Metso Lindemann (now for sale) in its base in Kremikovtzi. Since 2011 Ecometal Engineering works in collaboration with TMK Artrom in the Romanian city of Resita, which has built plant for processing of slag from the metallurgical plant there (known famous to have produced the steel for the Eiffel Tower). The partnership is a 7-year contract. In the processing of slag, iron is removed and the residue is sold as aggregates for road construction, the production of cement, etc. TMK Artrom itself is a public company with several subsidiaries and a turnover of over EUR 200 mln.
Source: Capital (15.03.2016)

Unicredit Bulbank raises Bulgaria's 2016 GDP growth fcast to 3.4% Bulgarian lender Unicredit Bulbank has raised its outlook for the country's economic growth in 2016 and 2017 on the back of a slump in energy prices and stronger than previously expected labour market recovery. The projection for this year has been increased to 3.4% from 3.0%, while that for next year has been improved to 3.6% from 2.9%, the bank said in a statement, adding that private consumption and exports will provide most of the fuel for growth in both years. Unemployment is expected to fall to 7.8% this year and further to 6.5% in 2017. Bulgaria’s registered unemployment rate stood at 10% at end-2015, according to labour ministry data. According to the statistics office's labour force survey, the jobless rate dropped to 9.1% in 2015 from 11.4% in the previous year. Bulbank also said it expects Bulgaria to turn to an annual inflation of 0.6% in 2016 from a deflation of 0.4% a year earlier. In 2017, inflation is seen speeding to 1.8% as economic growth accelerates. "Considering gaps in individual banks’ provision levels as a benchmark, it seems that the upcoming stress test and AQR are likely to reveal some shortages of provisions and capital in a limited number of privately-owned lower-tier local lenders," Unicredit noted as one of the risks for the economy in 2016. Other risks include an economic slowdown in the EU and a sharper than expected slowdown in China.
Source: Capital (24.03.2016)

The largest store of Carrefour is put up for sale for BGN 32 million A private enforcement agent announced for sale the largest hypermarket of Carrefour in Bulgaria-that located in Òhe Mall on Tsarigradsko shosse Boulevard in Sofia, together with ideal parts of the mall, its parking and a plot on which the very complex is built. The bidding for the sites of the debtor MSC Bulgaria, which is 100% ownership of the Greek Marinopoulos, will start from BGN 32.3 million VAT, as offers has to be submitted by the 9th of May and the deposit is BGN 3.2 million. There are a number of charges on the offered properties, notice specifies- conventional mortgage to Unicredit Bulbank and 20 foreclosures. The initiator of the sale is probably related to the Greek Marinopoulos. Carrefour in The Mall is the largest store of the chain in Bulgaria. It was opened six years ago.
Source: Capital (29.03.2016)

Creditor Banks will again try to take their money from Technogips Another attempt for sale of real estate of producer of plasterboard Technogips will be made by private enforcement officer. Procedure is at the request of United Bulgarian bank and Unicredit Bulbank due to overdue loans and is organized for the second time. Claims of financial institutions are associated with a loan of EUR 33 million, which is secured by real estate and equipment of the plant. As of the end of March the loan has plummeted to closely EUR 47.8 million. The enterprise’s real estate is announced for sale in two separate ads. The very company is located near the village of Kovachevo, Radomir municipality. The first one includes 14 production buildings with different functions and overall built up area of 25 thousand square meters, announced for sale for BGN 13.2 million. The second ad is for the land which has an area of nearly 72 acres and is estimated at BGN 1 million. Proposals from potential buyers are accepted until May 9th. The very plant is completely new and has modern equipment. Its products include various panels and gypsum plasterboard, mortars and plasters produced from the waste product of the sulfur purifying installations of the nearby TPP Maritsa Iztok 2. It went into operation in 2009. The plant continues to operate at the moment, too.
Source: Capital (08.04.2016)

Bulgaria's UniCredit Bulbank's Q1 pre-tax profit rises 7.8% y/y UniCredit Bulbank, the Bulgarian subsidiary of Italy's UniCredit Group, said its first quarter pre-tax profit rose 7.8% year-on-year to EUR 52 million UniCredit Bulbank, the country's biggest bank by assets, generated an operating income of 111 million euro in January-March, up 4.5% on the year, with net interest income up 0.8% and net fee and commission income up 7.9%, the parent's quarterly financial report published on Tuesday showed. By the end of the quarter, the number of the bank's offices amounted to 184, down by one from end-2015.
Source: Capital (12.05.2016)

Carrefour’s store in The mall was acquired by the bank creditor Unicredit Bulbank bought the largest hyper market of Carrefour in Bulgaria. The site is located in The Mall at Tsarigradsko shosse Boulevard in the capital city and was sold at a tender by a private enforcement agent. The procedure is expected to be over in a month’s time if there are no appeals from creditors. The bank will continue to lease the store of the debtor and owner of the property -KMB Bulgaria, which is 100% owned by the Greek Marinopoulos. When a bank is buyer price actually is not paid, the owned credit is cleared. Besides the store with an area of 15 thousand square meters and commercial part of 9 thousand square meters the buyer will take 9.54% of common parts of the mall, half of the underground parking, part of the plot of the shopping center, as well as two labs, five warehouses and technical premises, offices, etc.
Source: Capital (15.05.2016)

Unicredit Bulbank bought properties of its owner Technogips Land and buildings of factory for plasterboard Techogips are bought from one of the two big creditors and sellers- Unicredit Bulbank. The offered price was around BGN 18 million. Through the deal the bank takes back the site so that if the operator stops paying it might easily and fast sell the asset to someone else. The plant which is from the Balkanstroy group has retarded payments under Unicredit and UBB’s loan for years. Land and plot of the factory now are out of risk for the bank, though question for machinery remains pending. It’s the second attempt to sell Technogips’ land and building, after last February no tender was organized. The factory was built and equipped with a EUR 33 million loan from Unicredit Bulbank and UBB which was secured by immovable and movable property of the enterprise. As of March the loan reached nearly EUR 47.8 million.
Source: Capital (16.05.2016)

Bulgaria's CBA logistic centre put up for sale at starting price of EUR 4.3 mln A logistic centre near Veliko Tarnovo, owned by Bulgarian supermarket operator CBA Asset Management, has been put up for sale by a private enforcement agent at a starting price of BGN 8.5 million, a public sale notice shows. The sale of the logistic centre with an area of 5,185 sq m, built on a land plot of 11,864 sq m, is organized by DSK Bank, because of a mortgage worth a total of BGN 6.5 million, the note indicates. According to CBA Asset Management's latest financial report, in the first three months of the year it has closed eight supermarkets in Veliko Tarnovo, Pleven and Strazica. It has admitted having liquidity difficulties, but said it takes measures to cope with them. CBA's first quarter net loss narrowed to BGN 176,000 from BGN 623,000 in the same period of 2015.
Source: Capital (10.06.2016)

Speedy will distribute a dividend of 1.13 lev per share Courier company Speedy AD will distribute cash dividends amounting to BGN 1.13 per share. The company's profit for 2015 amounted to BGN 12.03 million, as BGN 6.02 million of it will be distributed as dividend payments to shareholders, or BGN 1.13 per share before tax. The remainder of the profit for 2015 would be referred to as retained earnings. This is the third consecutive increase in the dividend, after last year Speedy distribute a dividend amounting to BGN 1.05 per share, while the previous year the dividend was BGN 1. The decision to distribute dividends was taken at the annual general meeting of the company held on June 14th. The net amount of the dividend for individuals after withholding tax of 5% of the gross amount is BGN 1.07 per share.
Source: investor.bg (16.06.2016)

AG Capital, Northrige Capital start construction of 10 mln euro office centre in Sofia Bulgarian real estate fund AG Capital and London-based real estate fund Northrige Capital jointly launched the construction of EUR 10 million office centre in Sofia, the two companies said on Thursday. The Polygraphia office centre, whose construction represents the second stage of a 50 million euro project, should be completed by end-2017, the two investors in the project said in a press release. It will have 10,000 sq m of class-A rated office area. The first stage of the project was completed in 2012, releasing on the market 18,900 sq m of office area and 1,700 sq m of commercial space.
Source: 24 chasa (30.06.2016)

Sasho Donchev already controls Overgaz Mrezhi without Gazprom Sasho Donchev has taken control of the largest private gas distribution network in Bulgaria. By the spring of this year, Overgas Inc., in which equal shares were held by Russian Gazprom and Bulgarian investor, held 99.6% of the shares of Overgaz Mrezhi, which owns the entire gas distribution system. After the capital increase by nearly BGN 200 million, however, the control over the company was transferred to Donchev. So the separation between Overgas Inc. and Gazprom began to happen. The first clear signal of change was the ceased supply to the Bulgarian company by Gazprom in the beginning of 2016. After the preliminary plan, acquiring the share of the Russian company had to be finalized by the middle of this year. In addition to a new main owner and monetary resources, Overgaz Mrezhi took a loan of BGN 160 mln from Unicredit Bulbank, as a small part of the funds are to refinance old loans to DSK and the remainder will be for debts to the recent majority owner Overgas Inc.
Source: Capital (04.07.2016)

Banks distribute more dividends for 2015 Despite the notion that because of the inspections and the stress tests of BNB banks must keep as much capital as possible, some of the players in the market demonstrate confidence in their results allocating larger dividends for 2015 compared to the previous year. The decisions of the general meetings published so far in the Trade Register show that owners of five banks (six banks a year earlier), have voted a total of BGN 566 million in dividends. It's nearly ? of the reported profit of the entire sector last year, and the amount increased by 18% compared to 2014. More than half of the amount comes from the second largest in the country by assets - DSK, which transfers to its Hungarian owner OTP BGN 321 million. This makes the bank the only one that not only distributes part of its profits (BGN 305.8 million) for 2015 but undistributed results from previous years ass well. This is happening for the second consecutive year after in 2014 DSK transferred BGN 289.85 million in dividend at BGN 226 million profit.
Source: Capital (15.07.2016)

Unicredit reduced economic forecast for Bulgaria because of Brexit The negative impact on the decision of Britain to leave the European Union would take 0.2 percentage points from economic growth in Bulgaria this year and 0.6 next year. Most significant will be the effect through exports. According to the analysis of the bank, internal risks to the economy have declined. "The restructuring of the energy sector began to bear fruit until the potential risks associated with the ongoing stress tests and checks on the quality of banking sector assets remain manageable," said Kristofor Pavlov, chief economist of the bank.
Source: Capital (27.07.2016)

UniCredit Bulbank and VISA jointly offer mobile POS payment for home deliveries UniCredit Bulbank and VISA offer their customers a combined mobile POS terminal - mPOS, which works with smart devices and cash registers. This enables customers to pay by card not only at the shop but also when receiving goods by courier or pay for taxis. If the dealer offers a product or service in a shop, mPOS can be connected directly to a cash register of Datecs, without any customizations and cost of additional supplies. The service can be used by distributors, couriers, restaurants, shops, online stores with delivery, restaurants and rooms with an entrance fee, taxi services and any other business with payment at the customer’s address. For traders who want to connect mPOS to smart device Unicredit Bulbank and Visa provide free app mPOS, which can be downloaded from the online shop.
Source: Capital (11.08.2016)

New German company for BGN 20 million in Plovdiv German company Intrama expands its production in Bulgaria. The company, which manufactures and markets packaging machines and equipment for the food industry, will open a new production facility at its current site in Plovdiv. The company has another plant in the village of German near Sofia. The investment in the new plant will be BGN 20 million, and construction should be completed by the end of the year. This is another enterprise that chooses the region of Plovdiv for its new activities. Construction works in Trakia Economic Zone will begin on 17 August. Executor is Castello Precast, which has built other similar projects. The German company announced that construction is facing several challenges, especially short deadlines for completion of construction, since the first equipment and machinery should arrive in the end of the year.
Source: Capital (12.08.2016)

HPP Jrebchevo changes hands again One of the most resold hydropower plants in Bulgaria - HPP Jrebchevo, again changed ownership. The buyer of the nearly 15 MW station near Nova Zagora is the newly established company Jrebchevo Energy, in which partners with equal shares are the owner of Minstroy Holding Nikolay Valkanov and Rumyana Georgieva, who owns the electricity trading Energy MT. The transaction occurred in May, when Jrebchevo Energy acquired the then owner KID 2228. Rumyana Georgieva declined to comment on what the value of the deal, however, she mentioned that a hint is the price of EUR 7.5 mln, at which assets of its former owner were sold in 2014. She explained that one of the main reasons for the purchase is that for a year and a half her company Energy MT buys electricity entirely from the hydropower plant at freely negotiated prices.
Source: Capital (18.08.2016)

ING became more optimistic about Bulgaria’s economy The Dutch bank ING Group became more optimistic about the economy of Bulgaria and revised upward its forecast for GDP growth to 2.8% from 2.4% previously for the country. The budget surplus of 3.4% of GDP at the end of the first half is an important stimulus buffer for the rest of the year. ING revises up forecasts for growth of the Bulgarian economy in 2017 to 3% from its previous forecast for growth of 2.7%. Earlier this year a number of other institutions also increased their expectations for the presentation of the situation in our country. For example, the Italian UniCredit revised in a positive direction forecast for growth of Bulgaria's economy to 3.4% in 2016 and by 3.6% in 2017 and expects an average export growth during the two years of 5% per annum. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development also raised its forecast and predicted that in 2016 and 2017 Bulgarian economy will grow by 2.5%.
Source: investor.bg (22.08.2016)

Orbico buys distributor of perfumes Everett Croatian company Orbico, which owns the second largest distributor in the country - Orbico Bulgaria will acquire control of Slovenian Everet International - the owner of Everet Sofia. It will directly affect Bulgaria because both distribution companies have business here - last year their total turnover in the country is over BGN 580 million. The deal will affect the market for distribution of fragrances and cosmetics. This is the main business of Everet and its Bulgarian company. Revenues of Orbico Bulgaria increased by 44% to BGN 576 million last year, mainly from the distribution of fast-moving consumer goods and logistics services. Everet Sofia is quite small, reporting total sales of just over BGN 9 million for last year.
Source: Capital (29.08.2016)

Company from Prista Oil Group took BGN 100 million investment loan One of the biggest corporate bank loans in Bulgaria this year reached almost BGN 100 million. The company of businessmen Plamen and Atanas Bobokovs - Prista Invest 2016, has drawn an investment loan of BGN 98.5 million. The lender is the largest bank in Bulgaria - UniCredit Bulbank. Prista Invest 2016 is the newest company of the Bobokovs brothers whose holding company Prista Oil Group includes the production and marketing of motor and industrial oils (Prista Oil), batteries (Monbat and Start), lubricants and antifreeze (Verila lubricants), LEDs and LED lighting (Octa Light). The group has factories in Romania, Serbia, Turkey and Uzbekistan, where lead batteries are recycled and produce lubricants, greases and specialty fluids. The investment program of the holding in the coming months is mainly directed towards the recycling business. It is expected to build a plant for production of tin in Montana. This is a valuable metal, which is used in electronics and electrical engineering.
Source: money.bg (30.08.2016)

UniCredit Bulbank finances first startups The largest bank in Bulgaria Unicredit Bulbank entered a new segment - financing young companies. The first 7 candidates are approved nine months after the idea, three of the companies have already mastered the financing of EUR 200 thousand and EUR 300 thousand. These are the technology company Sensika Technologies, which e developed software for collecting and analyzing data and business intelligence, Playground Energy, which makes playgrounds with integrated appliances, converting the kinetic energy of swings and rides in sound and light, and Coursedot, which offers courses for IT experts around the world. For all three it is the second financing - the first was from the fund for venture investments Eleven. Now the bank is the necessary partner for growth and entering new markets. The model is to give special credits to startup enterprises that may be turned into shares of the company over time.
Source: Capital (02.09.2016)

The Bulgarian National Bank has reported that banks' profits by the end of July stood at BGN 909 million, BGN 295 million up year-on-year. According to BNB, an increase of lending is observed. The loans extended in July marked an increase by BGN 227 million compared to June. Consumer loans have increased by BGN 19 million and mortgage loans by BGN 16 million. Deposits continued to increase up to BGN 75,600 million. The positive trend comes after the inspections of assets and stress test results, which showed that the need for more provisions and capital have FIB and Investbank. The numbers shows that the five biggest banks - Unicredit Bulbank, DSK Bank, First Investment Bank, UBB and Postbank have generated over two thirds of the total profit of the banking system. The remaining BGN 266 million profits are distributed among the remaining 17 banks and five foreign bank branches.
Source: Dnevnik (08.09.2016)

The two largest Bulgarian banks are in the top 50 of Central Europe according to Deloitte’s rating. UniCredit Bulbank is ranked 28th place with assets of EUR 9.65 billion, which is 18.1% more compared to a year earlier, when the bank was ranked at 30th position. The second largest home bank is DSK Bank, occupying 48th place with assets worth of EUR 5.759 billion, or 11.5% more than in 2014. To make it into the top 50 Central European assets need to reach at least EUR 5.67 billion. For comparison, the third largest bank in the country - First Investment Bank at the end of last year is with assets of EUR 4.44 billion.
Source: profit.bg (09.09.2016)

Companies in Bulgaria invest most since 2008 Unlike the post-crisis period, currently business in Bulgaria has no potential to meet the market demand. This is the reason for the private sector investments to reach their highest level since 2008 and this trend is expected to continue, said the chief economist of UniCredit Bank Bulgaria Christofor Pavlov. Bulgarian economy shows another serious progress after the global economic crisis. Employment during the first half of the year grew by more than 100 000 jobs. The expert stated that at the moment the indicator is close to the maximum levels before 2008. The main problem for our country and for other countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) on the labor market is the shortage of qualified staff, as he expected this trend to deepen in the coming years. As an example, experts at UniCredit pointed out the auto industry. According to the chief economist of UniCredit for CEE Lubomir Mitov, German manufacturers will look for opportunities to relocate production from Britain to other EU countries.
Source: money.bg (21.09.2016)

Bulgarian banking sector net profit jumps 46% y/y in Jan-Aug The combined net profit of Bulgarian banks for the first eight months of 2016 soared by 46% year-on-year, reaching 1.04 billion levs ($595.4 million/530.8 million euro), central bank data showed on Friday. The banks' net interest income dropped by 10.1% on the year to 2.22 billion levs during the eight-month period, whereas net fee and commission income grew 3.8% to 698 million levs, the data showed. The banking sector's total net operating revenue for the first eight months of 2016 grew 6.5% year-on-year to 2.77 billion levs. The banks' total assets added 6.1% year-on-year, reaching 90.1 billion levs at the end of August. The gross loan portfolio of Bulgarian banking sector totalled 55.5 billion levs as of end-August, unchanged from a year earlier. Deposits increased 6.4%, reaching 76.5 billion levs. A total of 22 banks and five branches of foreign banks operated in Bulgaria as of end-August 2016.
Source: Capital (03.10.2016)

Banks allocate over 47% of investments in digital innovation Over 47% of the investments in Bulgarian banks are allocated to digital technology, innovation, technology projects to improve security in financial systems. In the last two years in the field of the so-called FinTech investments of USD 12 billion were attracted, while 14 years ago, funding reached only USD 1 billion. "Businesses are looking for security and flexibility in digitalization," is the conclusion of UniCredit’s research. In the past two years, startups specializing in the development of IT systems for the financial sector attracted funding for USD 50 billion. Most of them are based on cloud technologies. It is estimated that by 2017 the share of banks which use the system will be 15% globally. Remittances are emerging as a major area of application of the “blockchain” technology. Two of our banks - Unicredit and CIBank have confirmed to introduce it soon.
Source: investor.bg (03.10.2016)

11 Bulgarian companies fell in the top 100 in Southeast Europe One tenth of the biggest companies in Southeast Europe are Bulgarian. This shows regular annual ranking SeeNews TOP 100 SEE 2016. 11 of the 100 largest companies in the region are based in Bulgaria. They are mostly from the energy industry. The companies achieved a remarkable turnaround in performance, with a total revenue growth of EUR 70 million compared with a loss of EUR 401 million a year earlier. Lukoil Neftochim Burgas is back with the best performance in the country and occupies fifth place in the ranking. Shortly after it is MK Aurubis Bulgaria in seventh place, followed by NEK in 14th place and Lukoil Bulgaria in 17th position in the ranking. UniCredit Bulbank is the biggest Bulgarian lender occupying sixth position, followed by DSK Bank, under number 12 and First Investment Bank in 14th place. Armeec retains its leading position for the insurers, occupying 20th place in the ranking, followed by Bulstrad Vienna Insurance Group and Lev Ins.
Source: money.bg (05.10.2016)

Bulgarian unfinished holiday village Costa del Croco up for sale for 6.5 mln euro Bulgarian unfinished holiday village Costa del Croco, located near the seaside town of Tsarevo, in the country's southeast, has been put up for sale by a private enforcement agent for a starting price of BGN 12.8 million. The offer includes an unfinished complex with 294 apartments and 24 storage rooms located on an area of 23,500 sq m, according to a notice posted on the sale registry of the Bulgarian chamber of private enforcement agents. Bulgaria-Consult is the current owner of the unfinished holiday complex and joint debtor is "Laudis building" which was declared bankrupt in early 2015. The deadline for the bid for the entire project runs one month from October 7th.
Source: Capital (07.10.2016)

Business Park completed a large refinancing The owner of the largest office space in the capital - Business Park Sofia negotiated refunding. The finished fully eight years ago complex contracts a loan of EUR 113 million from Unicredit Bank Austria, UniCredit Bulbank and Raiffeisen Bank International. A credit of EUR 100 million was allocated a year earlier by the Italian bank and its Bulgarian division and it repayed an old obligation to Deutsche Bank. Now, one third of the loan is being taken over by the Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International and the total amount has slightly increased. The loan has two components: the first part is an investment for EUR 109.6 million, of which the Austrian division granted EUR 58 million and the Bulgarian – EUR 51.5 million. The second component is a conditional loan for EUR 3.3 million and is going to be provided entirely by UniCredit Bulbank.
Source: Capital (28.10.2016)

EIF signs guarantee deals with 5 Bulgarian banks in support of SMEs The European Investment Fund signed guarantee agreements with five Bulgarian banks which will generate a total of EUR 385 million of finance to small and medium-sized enterprises in the country. The agreements signed with United Bulgarian Bank, Raiffeisenbank Bulgaria, UniCredit Bulbank, Procredit Bank and CIBank, aim to improve access to finance for over 4,000 Bulgarian SMEs, including micro companies and start-ups, by ensuring that the banks committed to the SME initiative offer financing at lower interest rates. The five guarantee transactions are covering two-thirds of the target EUR 600 million of total SME funding available under the initiative. The SME Initiative is a joint programme blending support from the European Commission, EIB Group and EU member states with a view to stimulating SME financing by providing partial risk cover for SME loan portfolios originated by financial entities. Alongside European structural and investment funds contributed by member states, the SME Initiative is co-funded through Horizon 2020 resources as well as benefiting from EIB Group resources.
Source: mediapool.bg (21.11.2016)

Bulgaria's Speedy Group finalises deal to buy majority stake in SOMAT's Sofia logistics base Bulgaria's Speedy Group, the parent company of express delivery firm Speedy, said on Monday it completed the acquisition of majority stake in SOMAT logistics base in Sofia for BGN 46 million from Sofia-registered Vienna Real Estate. The deal, a large part of which was financed through a loan from UniCredit Bulbank, has proceeded through establishment of a joint venture company, in which Speedy Group holds a stake of 76%, while Vienna Real Estate owns the remainder. The joint venture will operate under the name of Sofia City Logistic Park. Currently, over 95% of its area is occupied by companies active in logistics, trade and services sectors. The company will focus on maintaining long-term relationships with tenants, improving the quality of services and creating the best conditions for the tenants' business operations, according to the statement Express delivery company Speedy has a long-term rental contract with the logistics base located in Sofia's southeastern neighbourhood of Gorublyane, which will expire in 2028.
Source: money.bg (05.12.2016)

Enemona Utilities is declared bankrupt. The decision of the Sofia City Court is of December 16, 2016. The Court ordered the cashing of the company’s assets included in the bankruptcy estate, and the distribution of liquidated property. Enemona Utilities is a major subsidiary of Enemona. Back in December 2015 private bailiff proposed for auction the central building of the company. Enemona Utilities traded with electricity, being a major player on the market. Larger recognized creditors of Enemona Utilities are Unicredit Bulbank with BGN 13.8 million, Investbank with BGN 10 million, NEC with BGN 4.3 million, Maritsa East 2 TPP with BGN 1.94 million, ING Bank NV with BGN 5.63 million, Electricity System Operator with BGN 939 thousand, Energy Supply Ltd with BGN 2.35 million, NRA with BGN 1.37 million and others.
Source: investor.bg (22.12.2016)