Interview with CEO Volodymyr Mudryi

0


[ad_1]

OTP Bank has been represented in the Ukrainian market since 1998 and is the recognized leader of the Ukrainian financial sector. Wanda Rich, Editor-in-Chief of Global Banking & Finance Review, recently sat down with Volodymyr Mudryi to discuss client relationships, product development, challenges in the crucial agriculture sector and how OTP Bank is coping with the changing environment following the impact of COVID-19.

Volodymyr started by telling Wanda about the initiatives OTP Bank has implemented that he believes contribute the most to his success. “Any true market leader must have a clear competitive advantage for their current and potential customers,” he said. “Our main advantage is a long and deep expertise in lending processes, which is why we provide standard and specific loans to particular target groups of individuals or their distinct needs. This includes many auto loans, cash loans, various consumer loans, new construction loans, mortgages, and more.

“We do this better, faster and more efficiently than our competitors. In addition, today we have the widest range of retail loans and other products in the Ukrainian market among all retail banks. This reflects our approach that a bank, in its classical understanding, should be a major provider of loans both to households and to the economy of a country in general. In the future, we plan to implement a mobile application focused on personal loans in the easiest and fastest way. “

As Agri-Business is a key sector in Ukraine, the challenges Agri clients face are varied. “It is one of the most dynamic and export-oriented sectors in Ukraine,” Volodymyr said. “Many banks are striving to achieve leadership and loan share growth in this industry. However, there are many natural challenges that are fairly common in Agri-Business, and probably everywhere to some extent. They include the risk of loss or further damage of yield, collateral security, price volatility and exchange rate risks.The latest had a negative impact on the EBITDA of Ukrainian agribusiness companies in 2019-2020, because they focused on exporting and suffered losses, due to both devaluation and revaluation of the UAH, depending on the season.

“The 2020 pandemic has dramatically reinforced some of these problems: price volatility has pushed up the prices of major Ukrainian products like petroleum, and sugar has fallen on the world market. This certainly could not fail to harm the financial situation of Agri-Business and the status of its borrowers. . “

Faced with these challenges, OTP Bank supports the growth of Agri-Business customers by opening up financial opportunities. “In 2020, OTP Bank continued to develop a unique and innovative local market project launched in 2017 – a separate unit for Agri-Business clients, which functions as a conveyor unit,” Volodymyr told Wanda. “This project aims to provide small and medium-sized farmers and other businesses in the agri-food sector with different financing options, price packages and other products tailored to their specific needs and characteristics. In particular, farmers can get financing just against warehouse receipts within nine hours. Thanks to this, OTP Bank has become a leader among all creditors who work with this tool, the total volume of warehouse receipts issued in favor of OTP Bank reached 24% of all receipts issued in Ukraine.

“In addition to this, in 2020, the bank started a proactive cooperation with various partners and concluded around thirty new partnership programs with the main suppliers of the agro-industry,” he continued. “Among them are Binfield, AgriPartner, WexlerAgro, UPG, Landtex, Timak Agro and other famous companies. significantly improved. These programs have enabled us to finance our clients with a rate starting at 0.01% per year.

“As a result, in 2020, OTP Bank Agri-Business lending volume almost reached 45% of the bank’s overall lending volume, while OTP Bank Agri Factory’s overall lending volume covered 360 borrowers. – agricultural enterprises.

Unsurprisingly, the bank had to take steps to adapt to the current pandemic. “Our first and foremost goal was to protect our employees and customers as much as possible from COVID-19 contamination,” Volodymyr explained. “First, we have implemented the ability to work remotely for our employees, flexible working hours and free COVID testing. Then in 2020, the bank implemented a range of additional online services, including various apps, statement requests, instant payments and more via a mobile. to allow our customers to avoid going to the bank’s branches. For professional clients who have suffered greatly from the quarantine restrictions, in particular commerce, hospitality and tourism, the bank has proposed a specific loan restructuring program to support them in a totally different environment. this, quarantine restrictions and declining profitability have resulted in the cessation of commercial activity in some sectors.

“OTP Bank has continued to provide loans to both legal entities and individuals. In particular, due to the macroeconomic situation, the National Bank of Ukraine lowered the base rate to its historic minimum, at 6% per annum. Thus, we have succeeded in making our UAH business line loans as affordable as possible, which has been very important for our customers in the current environment. “

As one of the bank’s top priorities, building strong customer relationships keeps a considerable focus on OTP Bank. “Our bank’s strategic vision is ‘manageable’, which we try to implement in our business, including product development and customer relationship management,” he said. “We are constantly improving business processes to meet customer needs and wants, which arise based on market and economic conditions. To this end, a regular collection of feedback from our customers was put in place in 2020. In addition, we have launched a CRM system specifically intended for our premium customers, which has enabled us to improve the quality of our services and of customer relations. “

Customer relationship goes hand in hand with product development at OTP Bank and is the driving force behind much of its innovation. “As I mentioned before, OTP Bank offers the widest range of specific products, services and special offers, especially in lending, for individuals and businesses in the Ukrainian market,” Volodymyr said. . “The main driver of development and commissioning is the customer base and their needs, specific demands, financial behavior and status. When we develop products, we analyze these needs, conduct customer opinion surveys and test our solution. It is the fastest. way to get acquainted with a client.

“It is also an opportunity to make tailor-made offers under standard products if the corresponding solutions for massive sales are inappropriate or even unnecessary. So the greatest value that technology brings to us is the ability to make highly personalized offers to our customers easily, online and at the right time. “

[ad_2]

Leave A Reply

Your email address will not be published.