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BRD General Director: Banks must assume their part of responsibility and costs for credits in CHF
Banks should have informed their clients when they contracted credits in Swiss francs on the risks they were exposed to because it is part of the banks’ professional ethics. In case the institution has a part of responsibility it should assume it, said BRD general director Philippe Lhotte at the press conference announcing BRD results for 2014.
He doubted that all 75,000 debtors in Swiss francs had been informed correctly and warned about risks by creditor banks.“There are 75,000 clients who made credits in Swiss francs and I am not sure that all of them were warned about these risks,” Lhotte said.
The BRD director pointed out that the bank he is head of has five such credits in its portfolio and intends to suggest clients the conversion in lei, at the rate before the strong appreciation of the franc in January.
The bank carried out for several months in 2006 an offer for clients with big incomes. Later on it decided to stop this kind of financing. The five credits in Swiss francs amount to 280,000 CHF.
The BRD director agrees with the stand expressed by BNR to carry out individual negotiations between banks and their clients to find a favorable solution for credits in CHF. He also agrees with the stand expressed by premier Ponta after the beginning of the Swiss franc crisis, when he said that both parties should assume responsibility and if a bank did not inform its clients correctly it should assume that responsibility.
On the other hand, Lhotte mentioned that he did not agree with the idea expressed by CPBR at the end of January about solutions suggested by banks to clients and refused to validate it. BRD is considering, following differences of opinion whether to continue being part of CPBR.
CPBR members include BCR, BRD - Groupe Societe Generale, Raiffeisen Bank, Unicredit Tiriac Bank, ING Bank Romania and Volksbank Romania. The six banks own about half of all bank active stock in the system and over a third of the staff in the field.
CPBR consider that turning loans into another currency should observe an EU directive applicable since 2016 according to which the operation takes into account the exchange rate at the date when it is made, while the insolvency law for persons could be beneficial only if it does not encourage the lack of discipline in payment. Referring to legislative proposals which have in view to impose another exchange rate than the one of the market for the conversion of credits granted in Swiss francs, CPBR shows that the question can be dealt with only between banks which granted such credits and their clients in order to find viable solutions.