PKO Bank Polski’s Branch Office in Prague will be headed by Mr Jacek Kasprzewski

- We hope that the group of the customers of the Czech Branch will soon include both the biggest Polish companies and smaller companies from the SME sector operating aboard. We want to be their first choice partner on the foreign markets, as we are in Poland. The most important keys of success of the new foreign branch include its efficient operations and constant improvement of the product offer. Therefore, the branch will be headed by a person with long-term experience in international banking, Mr Jacek Kasprzewski – says Ms Magdalena Rokosz, the Director of the International and Transactional Banking Sector in PKO Bank Polski.

Jacek Kasprzewski graduated from the Transport Economics Institute of Szczecin University of Technology (now Szczecin University). In 1988 he started his career in banking and has continued it until now. From 1995 he worked for Chase Manhattan Bank in Paris and from the end of 1996 in the bank’s representative office in Warsaw. After the bank’s merger with J.P. Morgan in 2000 he became the Executive Director in Treasury Services and was responsible for cooperation with banks in the Central Europe and Israel, while from 2011 to 2016 he was also the Director of J.P. Morgan Chase’s Branch in Poland.

The Bank’s Branch located in the Czech Republic will operate under the name of PKO Bank Polski, Czech Branch. Its launch is planned for the turn of the second and third quarters of 2017. The operations of the Branch will focus on corporate customer services, so they will be analogical to the operations of the corporate branch of PKO Bank Polski in Frankfurt. Its offer will also be similar, since it will include for instance transactional banking (including international cash pooling), electronic banking, trade finance products and corporate loans. Moreover, through the Czech Branch, the Bank wishes to acquire customers among Czech companies entering into business transactions in Poland.

The Bank’s customers are companies present on numerous global markets and companies wishing to develop their business on foreign markets. Czech Republic is one of the most important markets for corporate customers of PKO Bank Polski. That is why, the Bank decided to locate another foreign branch there (after the branch in Frankfurt). Czech Republic records the fifth biggest trade volume in transactions of Polish companies, it is also the second biggest recipient of Polish goods and holds the 7^th place in respect of the Polish import. The export of Polish companies to the Czech Republic has been growing systematically year by year. In 2015 it amounted to EUR 11.98 billion and was by 10% higher than in 2014. Moreover, the perspectives for direct investments of Polish companies in the Czech Republic are also positive. 

The opening of PKO Bank Polski’s Corporate Branch in the Czech Republic is an element of the international expansion strategy that assumes following the customers. The offer of international trade financing on distant markets is developed at the same time. Thanks to well developed relationships of PKO Bank Polski with local banks, customers may clear transactions in almost every place in the world. The Bank is also the strategic partner of Polski Fundusz Rozwoju (PFR), providing offers of export support. Operational management of financial and consulting products will be performed by PFR, while PKO Bank Polski will be responsible for distribution of products.

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PKO Polish Bank is a leader of the Polish banking sector. In the first three quarters of 2016. Its consolidated net profit amounted to 2.3 billion zł, and the value of total assets reached 275.6 billion zł. The Bank is the primary provider of financial services for all customer segments, reaching the highest market share in deposits (17.3 percent.) And loans (17.6 percent)., Including mortgages, of which one third is granted by PKO Bank and Polish PKO Bank Mortgage. With 7.5 million payment cards, the Bank is the largest publisher of debit and credit cards in Poland with a market share of 21 percent. With the development of digital tools, including applications IKO who already has a million activation, PKO Polish Bank became the most mobile bank in Poland. Bank's strong position strengthen the Group companies. Dom Maklerski PKO Polish Bank is a leader in terms of number and value of IPOs and SPOs in the capital market. With the acquisition of Raiffeisen-Leasing Poland, the Group has, in turn, the leader of the leasing market, with a share of 13 percent. Effective implementation of the growth strategy meant that Polish PKO Bank is the highest-positioned national finance company in the Forbes Global 2000 including the largest listed company in the world. In 2016, belonging to the Financial Times magazine The Banker, for the third time honored Polish PKO Bank award "Bank of the Year in Poland".