July 26 (SeeNews) - Hungarian financial services group OTP plans to complete the integration of Societe Generale Banka Montenegro in the second half of next year, OTP's local unit Crnogorska Komercijalna Banka said.
Societe Generale Banka Montenegro is changing its name to Podgoricka Banka and, together with Crnogorska Komercijalna Banka, will operate under the modern, international corporate identity of OTP Group, Crnogorska Komercijalna Banka said in a statement on Thursday.
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The Montenegro Stock Exchange said in a notice on Thursday that the new name of Societe Generale Banka Montenegro is "Podgoricka Banka AD Podgorica, Member of OTP Group".
After the completion of the integration process, Crnogorska Komercijalna Banka and Podgoricka Banka will become the largest bank in Montenegro, based on the size of the ATM network and number of branches, and loan and deposit portfolios.
"Our acquisition strategy primarily focuses on markets with good growth prospects, and where it considers to be realistic to reach an optimal market size and capitalise on synergies. This event is an important milestone in the development of Crnogorska Komercijalna Banka,” the CEO of OTP, Sandor Csanyi, said.
"We work to ensure that the merger, which is expected to be finished during next year, has a positive outcome for the customers and employees of both banks. This not only implies easier access to branches, but also the further enhancement of the service quality," Csanyi added.
Last week, Crnogorska Komercijalna Banka completed the acquisition of a 90.55% stake in Societe Generale Banka Montenegro for 35.6 million euro ($39.6 million).
"In the next few months, our main focus will be to maintain the highest level of service quality, while working with clients, and the successful implementation of the integration process. At present, in connection with the transfer, the customers of Podgoricka Banka do not need to do anything," the CEO of Crnogorska Komercijalna Banka, Pal Kovacs, said in the statement.
Crnogorska Komercijalna Banka said last week that it plans to soon launch a buyout bid for the 9.4% stake in Societe Generale Banka Montenegro it does not own yet.
($ = 0.897429 euro)
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