Finance Business in the Netherlands The reorganization of our domestic activities, aimed at completely liberating our regional branches so that they can concentrate on the acquisition of new business, has resulted in an improvement in our contact with the market. Our current efforts are aimed at achieving more regular and closer contact with our customers. In the commercial property sector in particular, we have been able to offer our customers forms of loan specially tailored to their financial plans, closely reflecting our greater scope in the deposit taking market. The FGH Deposit Mortgage continues to do well; this product has proved to be the basis of other highly customer-oriented forms of mortgage. The total amount of acceptances in 1985 was at approximately the same level as in 1984. In 1985 we were obliged to foreclose in 185 cases (1984: 308), resulting in our acquisition of 102 properties (1984: 167). There was an increase in number of custo mers who were able to solve their payment difficulties by selling their homes privately, which points to a certain amount of improvement in the housing market. FGH Real Estate The emphasis as regards real estate development in 1985 was on the completion of existing projects. We expect to be able to secure a substantial number of sales In 1986 since it may be assumed that a number of properties will then be fully let. In the meantime, in many cases in collaboration with partners, we have a number of interesting new projects lined up. In view of the fact that advance leases on these properties are looking good, we hope to be able to go ahead with these projects very soon. Our aim is that FGH Real Estate should continue to operate in the real estate market on a limited scale but very actively and preferably in collaboration with third parties, both as a profitable venture in its own right and as a support to the finance business. The World Trade Center at Amsterdam, developed in collaboration with Algemeen burgerlijk pensioenfonds, was officially opened by Her Majesty Queen Beatrix on October 25, 1985. The WTC is currently 90% let, which far exceeds our expectations. The dispute with our partner concerning the transfer of a part of our interest had yet to be resolved at the end of the year under review. International Activities The expansion of our financing activities abroad was continued in 1985. In addition to the good growth of the portfolio in the USA, our UK portfolio has also continued to increase. At the end of the financial year, the total of loans and guarantees granted outside the Netherlands was NLG 609 million, compared with an amount of NLG 519 million at the end of 1984. In 1985, the profitability of the foreign financing portfolio once again proved to be favorable. In light of this, we shall be attempting to expand our financing activities in Britain and the USA in 1986. The London office of FGH Finance Ltd. has already been opened. The realty market in the USA was again characterized by high buying and selling prices of profitably let properties in 1985. In this climate, we were able to secure several good sales in the year under review. For the future, we shall be entering into new realty deals only with the greatest of caution in view of the high purchase prices already referred to and the weakening of the rental market due to overcapacity. 15

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Annual Reports FGH Bank | 1985 | | pagina 17