A consortium led by US investor Cerberus Capital Management, which includes the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Finance Corporation from the World Bank Group, acquired a 100% stake in VeloBank, the buyers said on August 1.

VeloBank was a temporary institution created by Poland’s Bank Guarantee Fund, the state-owned guarantor of deposits in banks and credit unions, following the restructuring of the failed Getin Noble Bank to prevent its collapse due to inadequate funding.

The Cerberus-led consortium paid PLN 375 million (€87.14 million) for the stake and will also recapitalize the bank with PLN 687 million.

As a result of the takeover, VeloBank will no longer be a so-called bridge bank and will be free of restrictions imposed by the European Commission on such institutions.

“We believe that VeloBank is well positioned to build on its successes and become a leading bank for the Polish retail and business communities,” said Charles Dunlap, a senior managing director at Cerberus, in a statement.

VeloBank has nearly 300,000 customers and manages assets worth approximately PLN 2.7 billion, making it Poland’s 10th largest lender (2023 data).

VeloBank is a universal bank offering financial solutions for individual clients, private banking, SMEs, large enterprises, corporations, and public sector institutions.

Cerberus manages approximately $65bn in assets across credit, private equity, and real estate strategies. 

The company has a track record of investing in financial institutions globally and in Europe, including CCF and My Money Bank in France, Hamburg Commercial Bank in Germany, and Bawag in Austria.