Sale of Idea Bank is delayed again. The National Bank reacted
30 October 2024 15:35
On October 29, the Polish holding Getin Holding S.A. received a decision from the National Bank of Ukraine to extend the six-month period granted on April 29, 2024, for the sale of its Ukrainian subsidiary Idea Bank by three months. This is stated in the holding’s announcement on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports citing LIGA.net.
When deciding on the amendments, the National Bank of Ukraine took into account the Issuer’s request to extend the term of sale of shares of JSC Idea Bank (IBU), in particular, the conclusion of the contract of sale of IBU shares dated October 18, 2024,” the information explains.
Who is buying Idea Bank?
Serhiy Tigipko’s TAS Group, which already owns two banks – TAScombank and Universal Bank – agreed to buy Idea Bank from the Polish group Getin Holding.
As reported by the TAS press service, Idea Bank will be acquired for $34 million.
Alkemi Limited, a Cypriot company from the TAS Group, is to buy 100% of the shares.
The sale process is particularly piqued by the fact that if the closing date is later than December 31, 2024, Alkemi Limited will pay Getin Holding an additional $800,000 for each full calendar month starting in January 2025.
History of the sale of Idea Bank
This is the third attempt to sell the bank. The first two, involving Dragon Capital and FUIB, were unsuccessful due to the pandemic and the war.
As for the third attempt, Ukrainian Forbes previously mentioned FUIB and Nova Poshta among the bank’s buyers, in addition to TAS Group.
At the request of the NBU, the Polish shareholder of Idea Bank, Getin Holding, was obliged to sell this asset by the end of October.
What is known about Idea Bank
“Idea Bank (formerly Prykarpatlisbank, until 2011 – Plus Bank) was founded in 1989 and is one of the oldest banks in Ukraine.
In June 2007, the Polish financial group Getin Holding S.A. of billionaire Leszek Czarnecki became the sole shareholder of Idea Bank. At the time of the acquisition, the bank was valued at more than three times the capital, at that time at UAH 103 million. Now the value of Idea Bank is estimated at $20 million to $39 million. As of June 30, 2024, the total balance sheet of Idea Bank amounted to almost $162 million.
“Idea Bank operates in the retail banking segment and focuses on servicing individuals.
In March 2023, the NBU recognized the reputation of the Polish shareholder of Idea Bank as not impeccable and set a deadline for him to eliminate violations of banking legislation – one year from the date of the decision. After he failed to do so, the NBU ordered the shareholder to sell the bank.
