We at VR and Partners, we have told it several times on this blog, we propose ourselves as the ideal business support for those companies or even just for those Italian professionals who want to come and do business in Bulgaria. We help them by taking care of the aspects relating to the change of tax residence; we help them by supporting them in all operational phases both at the beginning and, if requested, also during the normal life cycle of the economic activity for the following years.
Inevitably therefore, we find ourselves having to face one of the typical problems in the life of any economic activity: access to credit. What is the situation of the credit system in Bulgaria? Let's start by saying that in general the Bulgarian system presents strong capitalization and liquidity. According to data from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (latest international census of 2018) in Bulgaria there are enviable economic indices such as the share of non-performing loans at 12.8%, or the general capital ratio at 20.8%. or, again, the ratio between loans and deposits which stands at 73%.
Numbers that clearly give the idea of a thriving economy. But who are the main credit operators in Bulgaria? There are a few groups that dominate: there is the Italian Unicredit Bulbank, the Hungarian DSK Bank, or the Greek Bulgarian Bank , or again, the Raiffesen Bank of Austrian origin. The groups mentioned so far cover more than half of the credit market in Bulgaria. The average interest rate charged for consumer credit at the time this post is written (spring 2022) is 4.5%.
Safeties offered? Practically the same as an Italian bank. In fact, consider that for several years Bulgarian banks have implemented the European procedures for the reimbursement of guaranteed deposits (deposit accounts and current accounts usually up to a maximum of 100 thousand euros per individual saver) and the rating agencies have an overall positive view of the Bulgarian system (between BAA and BBB).
