Poland’s banking sector is ripe for consolidation as rising technology and regulatory costs make size increasingly important, says the chief executive of Bank Pekao, the country’s second-biggest lender.
The central European country’s banking market has seen renewed deal making in recent months. Pekao was sold by UniCredit to a Polish consortium last year, and revealed last month it was in talks with smaller peer Alior Bank over options including a merger. Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank is trying to sell its Polish assets, with Santander the favourite to buy them, and bankers speculate what might happen to Commerzbank’s subsidiary, mBank, if the German lender was bought by a bigger rival.
