PRESS RELEASE
Prague, 17 June 2008
LEGAL MERGER OF RAIFFEISENBANK AND EBANKA TO BE COMPLETED ON
7 JULY, JOINT BANK WILL CONTINUE IN FURTHER EXPANSION
Legal merger of Raiffeisenbank and eBanka will finalize on 7 July. After that date,
Raiffeisenbank and eBanka will be presented under a joint name Raiffeisenbank and will use
one banking code 5500. eBanka’s branch offices will be dressed in Raiffeisenbank’s colours,
process should be finished by half of August. Joint bank will continue in further expansion, over
70 billion CZK granted from shareholders.
The integration process of Raiffeisenbank and eBanka will be completed on 7 July. „The legal
merger of both banks will be completed the said day, since 7 July we will be using only the
name of Raiffeisenbank; the banking identification code of eBanka will be cancelled. All
accounts of eBanka’s clients will use the new code 5500 after 7 July,“ said Raiffeisenbank’s
CEO, Lubor Žalman. The legal subject eBanka, a.s. become extinct by 7 July and all its
liabilities will be transferred to Raiffeisenbank.
The banking identification code of eBanka – 2400 – will be thus cancelled as of 7 July 2008.
The bank noticed the measure to its clients as well as other financial institutions and
approximately one thousand of non-banking institutions, such as utility companies, insurance
companies or mobile phone operators. „Clients – private individuals will not feel the change in
any dramatic manner as the bank will automatically change all their standing payment orders or
debit orders. They will have to inform their employers about the new bank code; we will take
care of everything else on their behalf,“ said eBanka’s CEO, Martin Kolouch.
Payments sent to the former code of eBanka after 7 July will be automatically redirected to the
proper new account number. „This temporary measure will cover the period of six months, i.e.
until the beginning of 2009,“ Martin Kolouch explained.
The joint bank will be operating under the brand Raiffeisenbank. “The joint bank will use
primarily the best internetbanking in the Czech Republic from former eBanka. The successor
Raiffeisenbank a.s.  Olbrachtova 9  140 21, Praha 4, Czech Republic
Tel.: 221 141 170  Fax: 221 142 170
Internet: http://www.rb.cz  E-mail: [email protected]
PRESS RELEASE
the eKonto account, our key product in the category of current accounts,“ said Martin Kolouch.
The scope or quality of offered services remains unchanged; existing clients will keep their
current products. „This particularly applies to eBanka’s internet banking, which will not be
closed or altered in any way,“ he added.
Furthermore, the design of eBanka’s branch offices will be changed over time by dressing them
in colours of Raiffeisenbank. „This change should be finished by half of August. In the second
wave in coming months, the branch offices will be altered to conform with the new modern look
that applies to the entire Raiffeisen Group in Central and Eastern Europe. The Czech Republic is
the first country where these new branches will be built,“ Lubor Žalman quoted and added, that
the bank will also open new branches and plans to operate on approximately 130 branches
opposite to actual 102 business places.
The day of legal merger will also see the launch of Raiffeisenbank’s new internet site. The site
will be using the domain www.rb.cz; clients will be automatically redirected from the current
pages of eBanka to the new site of the merged bank.
A new schedule or rates and charges will also come into force on 7 July, applicable for the
merged bank. None of the listed fees or charges will be changed; only the structure and names
used in the schedule. The new schedule of charges should be more comprehensive, for example
thanks to using distinctive colours for specific chapters.
The merged bank plans to aim its services particularly at households with income exceeding the
average, living in cities of more than 50 thousand inhabitants. It intends to provide these clients
with basic services as well as advanced consulting, for example in the area of mortgage loans or
financial planning. In addition, the bank will further develop its products and services for
entrepreneurs and large corporate clients.
The bank’s shareholders will support the said expansion and coverage of clients’ credit needs
with an amount of nearly CZK 70 billion. „The amount supported by an increase of primary
deposits will sufficiently provide for our expansion over the next three years,“ explained Lubor
Žalman. The funding concerns a combination of a registered capital increase, a subordinated
Raiffeisenbank a.s.  Olbrachtova 9  140 21, Praha 4, Czech Republic
Tel.: 221 141 170  Fax: 221 142 170
Internet: http://www.rb.cz  E-mail: [email protected]
PRESS RELEASE
debt and a credit line. The bank’s shareholders will also re-invest 80% of generated profit back
to the bank’s growth.
The integration of Raiffeisenbank and eBanka started in summer 2006, after Raiffeisen
International has acquired a 100% stake in eBanka from PPF Group. The two banks started
interconnecting their sales networks and offering common products, such as the eKonto
account. Success of the integration is also confirmed by record-breaking sales of products and
increasing profits of the banks, despite the challenging process. „It is absolutely unique that we
were able to increase the number of clients in the course of the integration. We have acquired
new clients and particularly increased the retention rate in the case of existing clients. Moreover,
client satisfaction rose as well,“ Lubor Žalman concluded.
Tomáš Kofroň
Raiffeisenbank a.s.
Raiffeisenbank a.s.  Olbrachtova 9  140 21, Praha 4, Czech Republic
Tel.: 221 141 170  Fax: 221 142 170
Internet: http://www.rb.cz  E-mail: [email protected]
PRESS RELEASE
BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT RAIFFEISENBANK A.S. AND EBANKA, A.S.
Raiffeisenbank a.s. (RBCZ) has been providing a wide range of banking services in the Czech
Republic to individuals as well as corporate clients since 1993. eBanka started its operations in
the Czech market in 1998, focusing on quality services with the use of direct banking. The two
banks initiated their integration in 2006. Since 2007, selected products are available to the
clients in the sales networks of both banks, totalling more than 100 branch offices and client
centres.
Both banks confirm their trend of dynamic development and growing profits. Total profits of
the two banks for the past year exceeded one billion koruna. Raiffeisenbank increased its net
profits by 39 percent to CZK 780 million; total assets reached the amount of nearly CZK 117
billion. After ending with a loss in 2006, eBanka’s net profit in 2007 amounted to CZK 231
million; total assets of eBanka have reached CZK 27 billion. Over the first quarter of this year,
both banks increased their profits by 50 percent, totalling nearly CZK 300 million.
Various local and international awards confirm the quality of offered services of the two banks.
In 2007, Raiffeisenbank was awarded the Most Dynamic Bank in the prestigious MasterCard
Bank of the Year contest for the second consecutive time. It has also won the third place in the
main category of the Bank of the Year. eBanka regularly achieves awards for the best account
and ranked third in this category in 2007. In the Zlatá koruna 2007 competition, eBanka has
won the first place in the category of payment cards for the payment card locking service and
eBanka’s internet banking has won in its category as well.
The majority shareholder of the two banks is the Austrian financial institution Raiffeisen
International Bank Holding AG. In 17 markets of Central and Eastern Europe, Raiffeisen
International serves over 14 million clients at 3,000 sales points. Since 2005, the group’s shares
have been quoted at the Vienna Stock Exchange. The majority shareholder is RZB Group with
68.5 percent; the remaining part is traded freely on the stock exchange.
Raiffeisenbank a.s.  Olbrachtova 9  140 21, Praha 4, Czech Republic
Tel.: 221 141 170  Fax: 221 142 170
Internet: http://www.rb.cz  E-mail: [email protected]