OTP Bank, is set to take control of DSK, Bulgaria's second largest bank in terms of assets

OTP Bank, is set to take control of DSK, Bulgaria's second largest bank in terms of assets, after the authorities in So.a declared OTP's offer of €311 million the winning bid on May 13. OTP defeated Austria's powerful Erste Bank, which offered €293 million, in what became a closely fought two-horse race for DSK. OTP is expected to close the deal this week and then begin the revamp of DSK, aiming to replicate in Bulgaria its own experience in Hungary into a full serviced financial organization offering modern banking services along with other products such as insurance, car purchase and leasing. OTP sees strong potential in DSK. While the Bulgarian bank has only 14% of the market in terms of assets, it has over three million account holders, making it by far the largest bank in terms of market penetration. It also has the largest network, with 1,300 branches and representative offices across Bulgaria. DSK will become OTP's second foreign acquisition since CEO Sandor Csanyi announced his intention of creating OTP as a regional bank some three years ago. OTP bought IRB, Slovakia's sixth largest bank, at the end of 2001 for some €14 million. The renamed OTP Slovensko Bank is expected to turn a profit this year, one year ahead of the original schedule. OTP, which was privatized in the late 1990s, is Hungary's largest bank, with over one fifth of Hungary's banking wealth, and 430 branches. Since privatization OTP also has an unmatched growth record on the domestic market, with net profits risen from the equivalent of €45 million in 1995 to €251 million last year.