A little over a year ago, on April 1, 2020, bank99 started as a subsidiary of Österreichische Post AG (80 percent) and Grawe Banking Group (20 percent). It now has about 70,000 customers – and that number will soon double. Bank99 manages the private client business of the Dutch group ING in Austria. It has more than 100,000 customers and total assets of around 1.7 billion euros. The branch’s corporate client business will remain with ING, the two companies announced Tuesday night. However, the regulatory and competition authority’s approval is still pending.
Current accounts, consumer loans, mortgages and securities investments are particularly affected; Exclusive savings clients are not included. The post’s general manager, George Poelzel, spoke in a broadcast of an “extraordinary move to accelerate the intensification of our financial services.” With the acquisition and planned expansion of both the customer base and the balance sheet structure, bank99’s funds will be increased by around 100 million euros by the end of 2021. After the difficult intensification phase caused by the pandemic, this move could reach a critical size faster than planned. Austrian Post expects bank99 to break even within the next three years.
ING’s Austrian clients, products and employees are supposed to be acquired by bank99 this year. Barbaros Uygun, CEO of ING Austria, sees an ideal deal for customers and employees: “By integrating into bank99, our customers get more service instantly and can choose between analog and digital, between a nearby service point and via mobile. All will be handled Our retail employees have a fresh perspective.” (APA)