EMERGING FUNDING FOR THE REAL ECONOMY
Third edition

April 19th, 2016

Athenee Palace Hilton Bucharest

OVERVIEW

The geopolitical balance in the Eastern hemisphere is challenged and already leaves its marks and influences on the Western European political environment. How does this situation influence the economic decisions and investors reactions in Europe? Geopolitical risks are particularly challenging for companies, as they are hard to predict and they have implications into many other business risks.

Financial markets and real economies are diverging. The financial cycle has fallen behind the business cycle. Asset valuations and investor perceptions have sudden moves, trying to bridge the gaps, unleashing the forces of market volatility. The global financial crisis channels regionally its influence on the banking and non-banking segments of Romania’s developing financial market.

Will Romania be able to sustain the current growth trend in the near future? In the context of a heavily banking dependent funding of Romania’s economic sectors, local entrepreneurs and SMEs are often forced to deal with a subsistence economy. The banks do not the lack liquidity but have a higher pressure on managing the risk. What are the opportunities for non-banking lenders/funding? Which are the viable alternatives for financing the real economy?

One generation of private equity funds has come to maturity. Will there be a new wave coming in? Which sectors will they be looking at? Which are the factors that will influence the venture capital activity in Romania in the near future? And what do investors see as the main incentives for private equity investment in Romania versus other CEE countries?

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The conference aims to bring together the stakeholders of the real economy’s funding value chain, giving everybody a platform and a chance to speak out their concerns. Our moderators encourage both speakers and participants to engage in debates and exchange of ideas and create a permanent dialogue between the panelists and the audience.

Guest Speaker

Speakers

Victor Vlad Grigorescu

An expert on energy policy and European economic policy, Victor Vlad Grigorescu is Romania's Minister of Energy since November 2015. A forme

Victor Vlad Grigorescu

Minister of Energy, Government of Romania

Bogdan Olteanu

Bogdan Olteanu has been the Deputy Governor and member of the Board of Directors of the National Bank of Romania since 2009. Between 2006 an

Bogdan Olteanu

Deputy Governor National Bank of Romania

Enache Jiru

Enache Jiru has an extensive experience of over 25 years in the finance and banking industry, public administration and financial consulting

Enache Jiru

State Secretary Ministry of Public Finance

Manuel Costescu

Manuel Costescu is State Secretary of InvestRomania, the government agency dedicated to provide professional support and advice to foreign i

Manuel Costescu

State Secretary, Invest Romania

Florin Ilie

Florin Ilie is Director, Head of Financial Markets Sales for ING Bank in Romania. He joined ING in 2004 and held the positions of Director f

Florin Ilie

Director, Head of Financial Markets, ING Romania

Ionut Dumitru

Ionut Dumitru, chairman of the Fiscal Council, is Professor of Finance at the Faculty of Finance, Insurance, Banking and Stock Exchange, Dep

Ionut Dumitru

Chief Economist, Raiffeisen Bank Romania

Juraj Kotian

Juraj Kotian is an economist and currently Head of Macro and Fixed Income Research for Central and Eastern European region at the Erste Grou

Juraj Kotian

Head of CEE Macro/Fixed Income Research, Erste Group

Mihaela Bitu

Mihaela Bitu is Deputy CEO, Head of Wholesale Banking ING Romania since 2010. With over 20 years of experience in the banking industry, she

Mihaela Bitu

Deputy CEO, ING Romania

Tibor Pandi

Tibor Pandi is CEO of Citi Romania since April 2010, having over 20 years of experience in the banking sector. In September 2014, Tibor Pand

Tibor Pandi

CEO, Citi Romania

Raluca Tintoiu

Raluca Tintoiu is the CEO of NN’s Romanian Private Pension Fund since September 2013, managing Romania's largest private pension fund, wit

Raluca Tintoiu

CEO NN Pensii

Dragos Neacsu

Dragos Neacsu is Chairman of the Management Board & Chief Executive Officer of Erste Asset Management since its establishment in 2008. He ha

Dragos Neacsu

CEO Erste Asset Management

Serban Roman

Serban Roman is Country Director at private equity firm Enterprise Investors since June 2015. He coordinates the activity of the Romanian of

Serban Roman

Country Director, Enterprise Investors

Ioana Filipescu

Ioana Filipescu, founding associate of Filipescu Visa Financial Advisors since 2014, has over 20 years of experience in financial services a

Ioana Filipescu

Managing Director, Filipescu Visa Financial Advisors

David Butts

David is Managing Partner in Bulgaria, and Co-leader of International Private Equity for CEE. David was appointed Director of Pharmacy at

David Butts

Managing Partner, Co-head of International Private Equity, CMS

Mona Neagoe

Mona Neagoe is a Partner at Pedersen & Partners and the Country Manager for Romania; she also oversees Hungary, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia an

Mona Neagoe

Partner and Country Manager Romania Pedersen & Partners

Marius Ghenea

Marius Ghenea is Investment Director at 3TS Capital Partners, serial entrepreneur and business-angel with successful investments in SEE and

Marius Ghenea

Investment Director, 3TS Capital Partners

Antonia Colibasanu

Antonia Colibasanu is Partner, Regional Director for Eurasia at the US geopolitical analysis company Stratfor. She is also Honorary Adviser

Antonia Colibasanu

Partner, Regional Director for Eurasia, Stratfor

Cristina Reichmann

Cristina Reichmann is an experienced Partner and Head of Capital Markets, FIS & Structured Finance in Romania at CMS Cameron McKenna. She ha

Cristina Reichmann

Partner, Head of Capital Markets, FIS and Structured Finance, CMS

Simon Dayes

Simon is an English finance lawyer and heads up the CMS International Finance team in South East Europe. He has been advising banks in c

Simon Dayes

Partner, Head of Banking & International Finance in SEE, CMS

Luca Bertalot

Luca Bertalot is Secretary General of the European Mortgage Federation - European Covered Bond Council (EMF-ECBC), representing the interest

Luca Bertalot

Secretary General, European Mortgage Federation

Andreia Radu

Andreia Radu is Principal Investment Officer in Financial Institutions Group of the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”) - World Ba

Andreia Radu

Principal Investment Officer, IFC - World Bank Group

Iulian Mangalagiu

Iulian Mangalagiu has been the CEO of Brikston Construction Solutions (former Ceramica Iasi) since 2007. Iulian is an experienced senior

Iulian Mangalagiu

CEO, Brikston Construction Solutions

Yilmaz Karakas

Yilmaz Karakas, CFA is an Investment Manager at ADM Capital where he is involved in investments in Turkey and CEE. He has over six years of

Yilmaz Karakas

Investment Manager, ADM Capital

Dorin Alexandru Badea

Dorin Alexandru Badea holds the position of Executive Director, coordinating the Treasury, Capital Markets, Cash Management and Financial In

Dorin Alexandru Badea

Executive Director, Head of Capital Markets and Financial Institutions EximBank Romania

Mihail Ion

Mihail Ion is the Executive Director for Mid Market Corporates and Public Sector with Raiffeisen Bank Romania since Jan 2015. He is also the

Mihail Ion

Executive Director for Mid Market Corporates and Public Sector, Raiffeisen Bank Romania

Mark Wallace

Mark Wallace is the founder and CEO of MWRS. Zurich, a risk and business services advisory company with an international client base. He i

Mark Wallace

Founder and Managing Partner MWRS

Cristian Micu

Cristian Micu is the Member of the Board of Governors at the Bucharest Stock Exchange since January 2016. He also holds the position of the

Cristian Micu

Member of the Board, Bucharest Stock Exchange

Raluca Nicolescu

As the Executive Director of the Balance Sheet and Portfolio Management, Raluca Nicolescu, CFA has the responsibility for managing assets an

Raluca Nicolescu

Director, Balance Sheet and Portfolio Management, Raiffeisen Bank

Doru Lionachescu

Doru Lionachescu has been until the recent transaction with Grupul Financiar Banca Transilvania the Principal Partner and Chairman of Capita

Doru Lionachescu

Senior Representative, Banca Transilvania

Razvan Nan

Razvan is the Associate Director in KPMG’s Deal Advisory department coordinating the financial services transactions, which includes finan

Razvan Nan

Associate Director, Deal Advisory, KPMG Romania

Horea Popescu

A Bucharest-based corporate partner, Horea has broad experience in advising on all aspects of corporate and M&A transactions in Romania and

Horea Popescu

Partner, Head of Corporate and M&A in Romania, CMS

Axel Kalinowski

Axel Kalinowski manages the Primary markets activities of the London Stock Exchange Group across Europe. As part of his responsibilities he

Axel Kalinowski

Manager - Continental Europe, London Stock Exchange Group

Alexander Zeidler

Alexander Zeidler is a Senior Credit Officer at Moody’s in London. He joined Moody’s in January 2006 focusing on Commercial Real Estate

Alexander Zeidler

Vice President – Senior Credit Officer Covered Bonds Moody's

Richard Kemmish

Richard Kemmish is an independent consultant specialising in covered bonds. He has over twenty years of mortgage finance experience in both

Richard Kemmish

Senior consultant, EBRD

Mihai Marcu

Mihai Marcu is Chairman of the MedLife Board of Directors. Graduate of the Faculty of Mathematics, University of Bucharest, Mihai Marcu ha

Mihai Marcu

Chairman of the Board, MedLife

Dorian Macovei

Dorian Macovei has over 17 years of experience in private equity, restructuring and turnarounds in various countries of Central and Eastern

Dorian Macovei

Managing Director, EMSA Capital

AGENDA

08:30 - 09:00

Registration and Welcome Coffee

09:00 - 10:45

Opening Session – Local and regional views (Le Diplomat Ballroom)

Geopolitical risks and their implications for Eurozone growth. Impact of the migrant crisis on CEE. How will Romania respond to the new geopolitical situation?
How ECB and Fed policies impact the CEE markets? Degree of convergence of CEE countries towards Western Europe – what is the impact of the slow pace of convergence?
Macroeconomic Trends: Romania vs CEE countries. Monetary policy and fiscal constraints in Romania comparative to CEE economies.
How will Romania be able to sustain the current growth trend? What can we expect to be growth drivers for the year ahead?

Guest Speaker:

  • George Friedman, Founder and Chairman, Geopolitical Futures

Panelists:

  • Bogdan Olteanu, Deputy Governor, National Bank of Romania
  • Enache Jiru, State Secretary, Ministry of Public Finance, Government of Romania
  • Manuel Costescu, State Secretary, Invest Romania, Government of Romania
  • Ionut Dumitru, Chief Economist, Raiffeisen Bank Romania
  • Juraj Kotian, Head of CEE Macro/Fixed Income Research, Erste Group

Moderators:

  • Florin Ilie, Director, Head of Financial Markets, ING Romania
  • Antonia Colibasanu, Partner, Regional Director for Eurasia, Stratfor
10:45- 11:00

Coffee Break

11:00 - 12:00

Panel I – Challenges of the banking sector and their impact on the real economy (Le Diplomat Ballroom)

What are the consequences of the ECB QE’s policy on Romanian financial market? Interest rate policies for the new economic situation.
Higher capital requirements, increased regulation, high NPLs, low interest environment – how do we face these challenges?
Consolidation of the banking sector – how far are we?
Despite high liquidity environment do banks have risk appetite to finance the real economy? Do companies need funding or capital?
Impact of digitalization on retail financial services.
Banking Union and the Resolution Directive.

Panelists:

  • Tibor Pandi, CEO, Citi Romania
  • Mihaela Bitu, Deputy CEO, ING Romania
  • Mihail Ion, Executive Director for Mid Market Corporates and Public Sector, Raiffeisen Bank Romania
  • Dorin Alexandru Badea, Executive Director, Head of Capital Markets and Financial Institutions, EximBank Romania
  • Doru Lionachescu, Senior Representative, Banca Transilvania Financial Group

Moderators:

  • Simon Dayes, Partner and Head of Banking & International Finance in SEE, CMS
  • Razvan Nan, Associate Director, Deal Advisory, KPMG Romania
12:00 - 12:15

Coffee Break

12:15 - 13:45

Parallel Panel II A – Private equity focus (Le Diplomat Ballroom)

The headline Private Equity deals in Romania in recent years.
What does the future hold/what's next?
Potential targets and opportunities in Romania, including hot industry sectors for PE investment.
Is the market under-penetrated? Forecast for the next year(s)
Opportunities and challenges arising from the generational shift.
"Buy and build" strategy - changing the PE landscape.
Case study: going through the investment process - perspective from both sides

Panelists:

  • Serban Roman, Country Manager Romania, Enterprise Investors
  • Yilmaz Karakas, Investment Manager, ADM Capital
  • Marius Ghenea, Investment Director, 3TS Capital
  • Ioana Filipescu, Managing Partner, Filipescu Visa
  • Iulian Mangalagiu, CEO, Brikston Construction Solutions
  • Dorian Macovei, Managing Director, EMSA Capital

Moderators:

  • David Butts, Managing Partner, Co-Head of International Private Equity, CMS
  • Mona Neagoe, Partner & Country Manager Romania, Head of Professional Advisory Services Practice, Pedersen & Partners
12:15 - 13:45

Parallel Panel II B: Covered bonds roundtable (Mozart 1 & 2 Hall, first floor)

Discussion on the new legislative framework for Covered bonds: Law no. 304/2015 and secondary legislation issued by the National Bank of Romania.

Panelists:

  • Luca Bertalot, Secretary General, European Mortgage Federation
  • Florentina Boboc, Director, ASF
  • Richard Kemmish, Senior Consultant, EBRD
  • Raluca Nicolescu, Executive Director, Balance Sheet & Portfolio Management, Raiffeisen Bank Romania
  • Andreia Radu, Principal Investment Officer, IFC - World Bank Group
  • Veronica Raducanescu, Deputy Director, National Bank of Romania
  • Alexander Zeidler, Covered Bonds VP – Senior Credit Officer, Moody’s Investors Services

Moderators:

  • Cristina Reichmann, Partner, Head of Capital Markets, FIS and Structured Finance, CMS
13:45 - 14:30

Networking Buffet

14:30 - 16:00

Panel III – Investment opportunities, strategies and challenges in the current market conditions (Le Diplomat Ballroom)

What is the current investment environment situation?
How to cope with the challenges of a low interest environment?
Which is the optimal allocation mix in the current market conditions?
Rethinking companies’ capital structure. Do companies need more capital or just different capital structure?
Where is Romania on innovation of investment practices?
Structural reforms and particularly improvements in SOEs. Case studies and lessons learnt.
How to embrace the Capital Market Union‘s opportunities and challenges in a local / regional context?

Panelists:

  • Victor Vlad Grigorescu, Ministry of Energy, Government of Romania
  • Dragos Neacsu, CEO, Erste Asset Management
  • Raluca Tintoiu, CEO, NN Pensii
  • Axel Kalinowski Manager - Continental Europe, London Stock Exchange Group
  • Cristian Micu, Member of the Board, Bucharest Stock Exchange
  • Mihai Marcu, Chairman of the Board, MedLife

Moderators:

  • Mark Wallace, Founder and Managing Partner, MWRS
  • Cristina Reichmann, Partner, Head of Capital Markets, FIS and Structured Finance, CMS

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venue

Located in central Bucharest, the Athenee Palace Hilton Bucharest hotel is situated near the Romanian Athenaeum and is just a five minute walk away from many popular tourist attractions in the beautiful city of Bucharest.

1-3 Episcopiei Street Sector 1, Bucharest 010292.