Fortis acquires Innotrade Leasing Rt. and Takleasing Rt., two sister leasing companies in Hungary

Brussels/Utrecht/Budapest, 24 February 2006, Fortis announced today that it has acquired 100% of the capital of two Hungarian
leasing companies - Innotrade Leasing Rt., which targets mainly small enterprises, and Takleasing Rt., which specializes in financial leasing and real estate leasing.

Karel De Boeck, CEO of Fortis Commercial and Private Banking, comments: ‘Albeit relatively modest in size, Innotrade Leasing and Takleasing will play a strategic role in strengthening our presence in Hungary, as they will complete our product offering to the small and medium-size enterprises that we already serve through our Business Centre in
Budapest. The Hungarian leasing market ranks no less than eighth in Europe and enjoys dynamic growth coupled with high penetration rates. The development of leasing activities in Hungary – which is also an interesting market for Vendor Leasing – perfectly fits in with our strategy to grow asset-based finance throughout Europe.’

‘The substantial growth of the Hungarian leasing market combined with the expected development of cross-border trade and financial flows with the rest of Europe fully justifies that we join Fortis, which is deeply rooted in the European economy. Becoming part of the Fortis Lease extensive network will undoubtedly provide us with tremendous development opportunities that will in turn be highly beneficial to our customers.’ commented Attila Csak, CEO of the acquired companies, on behalf of the sellers.

Founded in 1989, Innotrade Leasing Rt. is an independent leasing company specializing mainly in servicing small companies. 80% of its business is made in forints, with the remaining 20% already done in euros. Its sister company, Takleasing Rt., focuses on financial and real estate leasing to companies and individuals.
The two companies are based in Budapest with two additional sales offices in Pécs (South Hungary) and in Gyo_r (West Hungary). Both companies enjoy an excellent reputation due to sound management and solid organization, particularly on the sales side. Together, they employ 28 FTEs. The acquisition will have no material impact on Fortis’s solvency or net earnings per share. It is expected to be finalized by the end of April, subject to regulatory approvals.


Fortis Lease Group (FLG) is a fully owned subsidiary of Fortis. It is a strong European cross-border provider of leasing services and spearheads Fortis’s Asset Based Finance operations. FLG is one of the few integrated leasing groups in Europe and has realized lease production of around EUR 4 billion in 2005. Its total net assets currently amount to EUR 8 billion. FLG employs some 500 staff and operates in 14 countries (Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Portugal, the UK, Spain, Germany, Italy, Poland, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Switzerland and Hungary).

Fortis is an international financial services provider engaged in banking and insurance. We offer our personal, business and institutional customers a comprehensive package of products and services through our own channels, in collaboration with intermediaries and through other distribution partners. With a market capitalisation of EUR 37.4 billion (31/01/2006), Fortis ranks among the twenty largest financial institutions in Europe. Our sound solvency position, our presence in 44 countries and our dedicated, professional workforce of 56,000 enable us to combine global strength with local flexibility and provide our clients with optimum support. More information is available on www.fortis.com

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Liliane Tackaert

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