The corona crisis has shaken many certainties in the banking sector and turned processes upside down. At Raiffeisenbank in the Oberland, however, the Executive Board sees no cause for lasting concern, at least on business.
Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen - "Despite everything, we are very satisfied," said deputy CEO Manfred Gasteiger on Wednesday in the bank's press conference in Bad Tölz. In the bank's catchment area, which stretches from Endlhausen to Jachenau and from Bad Tölz to Fischbachau in the district of Miesbach, “no default risks are currently discernible”.
In such press interviews, Raiffeisenbank Oberland normally gives an overview of the business data of the previous year. "But now we have Corona, and hardly anyone is interested in what was last year," said CEO Hansjörg Hegele. And so the balance sheet for 2019 took a back seat to current developments.
As the board members reported, with the outbreak of the pandemic and the lockdown, customers' need for advice - mostly by telephone or digitally - increased enormously. Over 200 customers have been granted a suspension of their loan repayment - with a break of up to one year, "so that people can breathe and have the feeling: 'We trust you,'" said board member Manfred Klaar. In April, Raiffeisenbank in the Oberland also committed loans totaling EUR 13.1 million, "partly for investments, partly for operating costs, to keep the store running," said Klaar. According to Gasteiger, around 1,000 bank customers received emergency aid totaling 6.7 million euros from the Free State and the federal government. On the other hand, the application for loans at the KfW (Loan Corporation for Reconstruction) has proven to be “not so easy to use”. "In the end, we served 60 percent of the inquiries from our own resources," said Manfred Klaar.
Even if those responsible for the bank know about the economic hardships, particularly in the catering and tourism sector: "We do not see any company that would be in acute danger of bankruptcy," said Gasteiger. "The healthy people who had enough reserves will survive it," said the forecast of board member Josef Bernöcker. It will be more difficult for companies "that had to nibble before". Hegele quoted the statement from a hotelier from the region: "If the previous closings remain, then we have got away with a black eye." Of course, it remains to be seen how the loss of sales with a delay, for example at suppliers, will have an effect, added Klaar.
In the meantime, Gasteiger is seeing a continuing "boom" in the craft and construction sector in the Oberland - this can be seen both in the credit inquiries and in the demand for building materials in the bank's three construction and goods centers in Thanning, Lenggries and Warngau.
Excursionists: Mayor complains about "devastating traffic" in Schlehdorf
Despite the Corona crisis, the bank wants its 18,842 members to share in last year's profit and pay them a dividend equal to two percent of their deposits. With a normal deposit of 2500 to 3000 euros that would be 50 to 60 euros. However, the banking regulator BaFin has already made it clear that, given the current situation, financial institutions should forego dividend payments and instead increase their equity.
"However, we think it makes a difference whether a Deutsche Bank or Commerzbank pays a relatively large amount to its shareholders or whether a cooperative bank like us has a continuous dividend policy," said Hegele. "We are clearly of the opinion that our members are entitled to a dividend," said Gasteiger. This is decided in the representative assembly, which has been postponed to October 6 due to the contact restrictions. The board members hope that the line of banking supervision will relax by then.
District Office issues a driving ban for Upper Isar - warning for Pupplinger Au
The Raiffeisenbank in the Oberland looks after 48 642 customers and operates 15 branches and 25 ATMs. It has 334 employees, 11 of whom are currently trainees. Six apprentices will be hired in September 2020. As of December 31, 2019, the level of loans to customers was EUR 980 million. Of these, new commitments or extensions of existing loans included a total of EUR 300 million in 850 individual loan transactions. Customer deposits were 1017 million euros at the end of 2019 - this is 5.2 percent more than in the previous year for loans and deposits. The balance sheet total rose by 3.4 percent in 2019 to 1289 million euros. The bank generated an annual net profit of EUR 4 241 683, the balance sheet profit was EUR 1 229 527. The bank would like to pay out EUR 313,333 as a dividend to its members if possible. "We exceeded our forecast and stabilized at a high level," said CEO Hansjörg Hegele. "It was a very good year for our house."
Customs or nuisance? "Pfingsthansl" are up to mischief in Sachsenkam
