Is there any place left in the banking and finance sector for new entrants?
I would say that Bulgaria is already over banked, especially as far as dealing with the corporate sector is concerned. We have 35 commercial banks in Bulgaria, most of them rather small ones. Two thirds of the banking assets are concentrated in the three biggest banks. Those who are not among the first fifteen banks have a combined market share of not more than 10%. I think that it is more than natural that most of these banks will have to go out of business because they cannot be competitive in the long term. As far as foreign involvement is concerned, I do not think there will be new players because it is not attractive for anyone any more. But among the foreign banks there is a real potential for consolidation. And what is happening now with Biochim further proves it – we see mainly banks interested in the privatization who already have some presence and who believe that this will further enhance their efforts. What is your opinion about Bulgaria joining the EU? I think this is a na
