BBVA is here to stay, Garanti exec assures

ISTANBUL - Anatolia News Agency

The IMF has made it clear that Spanish BBVA does not need recapitalization, says Garanti Bank General Manager Ergun Özen during a meeting in Istanbul. AA photo

There is no possibility of a BBVA walkout from Garanti, despite the ongoing crisis, according to Garanti Bank General Manager Ergun Özen.

BBVA bought a nearly 25 percent stake in Garanti for $5.8 billion in March 2011.

Speaking at an Istanbul meeting to launch a joint project with Google for small and medium businesses (SME), Özen said some Spanish public lenders were facing a hard time, but that private banks were in a good position. 

However, “the IMF, one of the top authorities on the issue, has already made it clear that BBVA does not need capitalization … The stress tests show that the lender does not need capital for today. This is what the IMF says,” he said. 

The Spanish private banks will be in an advantageous position in three years time, Özen forecasted, but currently “the hardships behind the Spanish economy are obvious.”

There lie some major structural mistakes in the foundation of the European Union and the eurozone can only overcome the crisis as a whole, he said, adding his opinion that the 17-nation zone needed to issue Eurobonds and that German opposition on this issue would not last long.

The current situation in the zone -- with no growth, no increase in tax income and the interest spending double -- was not sustainable for any country, Özen said.

Speaking at the same event, Google Turkey Director Bülent Hiçsönmez said companies could achieve sustainability in success in this year of rapid changes only with the correct investments in the Internet. 

The two companies, along with Yurtiçi Kargo, IdeaSoft and Sadece Hosting, offer SMEs the opportunity to carry their businesses over to the Internet. 

Industry Minister Nihat Ergün also made a speech at the launch event.