OTP Group has acquired Alpha Bank Albania, thereby becoming the fifth largest player in the Albanian market in terms of total assets and the third largest in client loans with a total market share of 16.3 percent.
According to their statement, the integration process is expected to last until 2023, and as a result of the integration of the two banks, OTP Group’s market share in Albania is expected to reach 11 percent in total assets while the client loan portfolio will increase by one and a half times.
– Our decision to enter the Albanian market four years ago has proven to be a good one. Since then, the OTP Albania subsidiary has fulfilled most of its ambitious strategic goals, becoming the most profitable and efficient bank in Albania in 2021, despite its small size – stated László Wolf, Deputy CEO of Hungary’s OTP Bank, adding that this event is an important milestone in the development of the banking group in Albania.
– With this transaction, we confirm not only our long-term and serious commitment to the Albanian banking market but also demonstrate that OTP Group has a solid foundation, is well-capitalized, has exceptional liquidity, and the management is committed to strengthening regional presence – said Wolf.
OTP’s acquisition transactions in the region began in 2014, since when Hungary’s OTP Bank has announced the purchase of 12 financial institutions and banking portfolios in nine countries, including the current acquisition of Alpha Bank Albania. All banks, except for the transaction of Slovenia’s Nova KBM, which is still in the completion phase, have been successfully integrated into the banking group.
