Poland in the Bank 4 networking WHAT's NewS Issue 3 March 1996 March 1 marked the official launch of the brand- new Rabo-BRP Bank Poland.The acquisition of a majority stake in the Polish Bank Rolno- Przemyslowy (BRP) means that within 18 months, the bank's presence has developed from a one- person rep office into a fully-fledged banking operation employing almost 70 staff. Henk Adams and Jan Laskowski explain why BRP was such an attractive option for Rabobank and what the newly formed team will be aiming for. Henk Adams, Managing Director Things have moved rapidly for the bank in Poland. A rep office was estahlished by Henk Adams in the winter of 1994. Almost exactly one year ago, he was explaining in the old Raboband International that the tiny Warsaw team was still in the process of orientation in what can only be described as one of the fastest growing and most interesting markets for the bank. He was also quick to point out that acquiring a full banking licence would be a precondition for providing the bank's usual range of services and products to the Polish market. But acquiring that licence would probably be linked by the authorities to the take over of an ailing Polish bank. 'When we talked to the Central Bank authorities about entering the market, they came up with a number of banks they thought we could "rescue'Y Adams recalls. 'Fortunately, I'd already had a chance to look around the market and we believed that BRP would be the best option for us. And again fortunately, we were also able to convince the Central Bank of that. Our strongest argument was that although BRP was a good bank, it was too small to survive long-term on its own.' WESTERN-STYLE STRUCTURE BRP was already known to Rabobank. 'Our subsidiary RIAS was involved in setting up the bank by BRP's original shareholders, which include an European Union fund and the Polish-American Enterprise Fund, as well as Polish investors,' Adams say. Jan I.askowski picks up the story: 'The shareholders recognized a need for a Western-style commercial bank specializing in agribusiness. In recent years, this sector had been neglected by other banks even though we've seen the launch of numerous private companies, new ventures and privatizations in this field. The economist and former minister, Dr Dariusz Ledworowski, became BRP 's president and he put together a strong team. Our entry into the Polish market was successful - the numbers show that. We were able to keep a clean loan portfolio, which is quite an achievement in Poland, and we were also able to build up a good clientbase and a range of products for the domestic market.' DOMESTIC GOES INTERNATIONAL However, further growth for BRP was im- peded by two factors. One was a relatively small capital base, the other was the lack of the foreign exchange licence essential for cross-border trade. 'BRP had a balance sheet of around USD 30 million, a great management team and staff, and a varied^ secondary agri-portfolio,' Adams says. 'Essentially, BRP was a purely domestic- oriented, zloty-based local bank. The problem was that because of its small capital base and no foreign exchange licence, its activities were limited. But even with these limitations, BRP was still doing very well.' FACT FILE - POLAND Land surface 313.000 km2 Population 38 min Unemployment 13.5% GOP (per capita) 2,235 GOP (sector) - agriculture 13% - industry 45% - services 43% Real GNP growth 5% Exports 20.510 min Imports 22.814 min Source: Rabobank Economie Research Department. Figures in USD and percentages are estimates for 1995.

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