The RZB Group and Raiffeisen International at a glance

The RZB Group is headed by Vienna-based Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich AG (RZB). RZB is Austria's third-largest bank and the central institution of the Austrian Raiffeisen Banking Group (RBG). As of 31 December 2006, RBG's consolidated balance-sheet total amounted to €205 billion, making it the country's largest banking group by total assets. It represents approximately a quarter of all domestic banking business and comprises the country's largest banking network with more than 2,250 branches and some 22,000 employees.

Founded in 1927, RZB provides the full range of commercial and investment banking services in Austria and is regarded as a pioneer in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). It ranks among the region's leading banks, offering commercial, investment and retail banking services in the following markets:




Albania Raiffeisen Bank Sh.a.

Belarus Priorbank, OAO

Bosnia and Hertegovina Raiffeisen Bank d.d. Bosna i Hercegovina

Bulgaria Raiffeisenbank (Bulgaria) EAD

Croatia Raiffeisenbank Austria d.d.

Czech Republic Raiffeisenbank a.s. si eBanka, a.s.

Hungary Raiffeisen Bank Zrt.

Kosovo Raiffeisen Bank Kosovo S.A.

Poland Raiffeisen Bank Polska S.A.

Romania Raiffeisen Bank S.A.

Russia ZAO Raiffeisenbank Austria

Serbia Raiffeisen banka a.d.

Slovakia Tatra banka, a.s.

Slovenia Raiffeisen banka d.d.

Ukraine VAT Raiffeisen Bank Aval


 

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Raiffeisen International Bank-Holding AG acts as these banks' steering company, owning the majority of shares (in most cases 100 or almost 100 per cent). Furthermore, many finance leasing companies (including one in Kazakhstan) and a number of other financial service providers are part of the Raiffeisen International Group. The company is a fully consolidated subsidiary of RZB, which owns 68.5 per cent of the common stock. The balance is free float, owned by institutional and retail investors. The shares are traded on the Vienna Stock Exchange.

RZB and Raiffeisen International, respectively, have time and again underpinned their reputation as early movers in CEE, having founded the first subsidiary bank in Hungary already in 1986, thee years prior to the fall of the Iron Curtain. One of the more recent examples was the market entry into Belarus, when Raiffeisen International acquired the majority of Priorbank, the country's third-largest bank, in January 2003. With this step, it was the first western banking group to engage in a strategic investment in Belarus. This was also the case in December 2003, when Raiffeisen International won the tender for the privatisation of the Savings Bank of Albania, the country's largest bank, renamed Raiffeisen Bank the following October. And in August 2005, Raiffeisen International acquired 93.5 per cent of the second-largest Ukrainian bank, Bank Aval. The deal was the largest acquisition for Raiffeisen International and strengthened both its local and regional predominance significantly. The bank was rebranded Raiffeisen Bank Aval in autumn 2006. With the acquisition of the Russian Impexbank in early 2006, Raiffeisen International markedly boosted its position in this largest CEE market: Impexbank and Raiffeisenbank Austria, established in 1997, became the local number seven and the leading Western bank in Russia. The legal merger of Impexbank and Raiffeisenbank took place in November 2007. In July 2006, Raiffeisen International fully acquired Czech eBanka, thus expanding its local market presence by this well-positioned retail bank.

Raiffeisen International continued its profit growth during the first three quarters of 2007: Consolidated profit (after tax and minorities) rose by 43 per cent to € 626 million. Having grown by 21 per cent, the balance-sheet total amounted to € 67.5 billion at the end of September. The return on equity before tax stood at 28.0 per cent, and the cost/income ratio improved to 56.2 per cent. 3,023 business outlets covered the CEE-region, and more than 57,000 employees served over 13 million customers.

As of 30 June 2007, the RZB Group's balance-sheet total amounted to € 126.1 billion, up 9 per cent compared with December 2006. The Group has doubled its total assets within three years. IFRS-compliant profit before tax surged 46 per cent to € 846 million. Return on equity before tax was 25.5 per cent, again the best among Austria's large banks. The cost/income ratio improved by 1.4 percentage points to 55.3 per cent. At the reporting date, the Group employed a staff of 58,030 worldwide.

In addition to its banking operations – which are complemented by representative offices in Moldova (Chisinau) and Russia (Moscow) – RZB runs several specialist companies in CEE offering solutions, among others, in the areas of M&A, real estate development, fund management, leasing and mortgage banking.

In Western Europe and the USA, RZB operates a branch in London and representative offices in New York, Brussels, Frankfurt, Milan, Paris and Stockholm. A finance company in New York (with representative offices in Chicago, Houston and Los Angeles) and a subsidiary bank in Malta complement the scope. In Asia, RZB runs branches in Beijing (with a representative office in Zhuhai) and Singapore as well as representative offices in Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Tehran and Seoul. This international presence clearly underlines the group's emerging markets strategy.

The RZB Group's consistent commitment to quality is regularly reflected by a broad range of local and international awards. In July 2007, the British magazine Euromoney chose RZB together with Raiffeisen International as Best Bank in Central and Eastern Europe, both for the third consecutive time. In April 2007, local awards as Best Bank were given to Raiffeisen International's Network Banks in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia by Global Finance magazine. At the same time, the magazine awarded the regional title "Best Bank in Central and Eastern Europe" to RZB and Raiffeisen International for the fifth time. In addition, the RZB Group received Best Bank awards for Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Ukraine. And in November 2007, The Banker, the renowned magazine of the Financial Times Group, awarded RZB the title Bank of the Year in Austria.for the second time in a row. In addition, Raiffeisen International's Network Banks in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Serbia, Slovakia and Ukraine received the awards for their own countries.


RZB is rated as follows:

Standard & Poor's

* Short term A-1
* Long term A+

Moody's

* Short term P-1
* Long term Aa2
* Financial Strength C

RZB is a member of the Unico Banking Group, an association of European co-operative banks. With total equity of more than € 170 billion and an aggregate balance sheet total of more than € 3,334 billion (at year-end 2006), Unico is by far the largest banking group in Europe. 531,000 employees in 38,000 banking outlets attend to more than 100 million customers. Average market shares of approximately 17 per cent in loans and 21 per cent in deposits underline the Group's importance.