KRUK gaining momentum abroad

The KRUK Group, a Poland-based debt collection leader in Central Europe, invested PLN 214m in new debt portfolios in the first quarter of 2017. Recoveries in the same period reached PLN 309m. For the first time in the Company’s history, recoveries from foreign markets were higher than recoveries of Polish debts.

The KRUK Group invested PLN 214m in 15 debt portfolios with a total nominal value of PLN 3.8bn, which was up 234 per cent year on year and represented 17 per cent of the result generated in 2016. The investments were made in Poland (ca. 10 per cent) and in the five other countries where the Group operates (ca. 90 per cent), namely Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany and Italy.

“It was one of the best first quarters for us in terms of investments – only in 2014 we invested more. The first quarters were usually weaker than the rest of the year, as financial institutions usually only prepare for auctions in that period. With the Q1 result of PLN 214m, we are well on track to achieve our target for 2017 – namely, around one billion złoty in investments,” said Piotr Krupa, President of the Management Board of KRUK S.A.

Recoveries from purchased debt portfolios reached PLN 309m in the period, up 42 per cent year on year.

“KRUK is consistently expanding its foothold in foreign markets. Formerly, this was mainly visible in new investments, but in the first quarter of this year recoveries from foreign markets for the first time exceeded recoveries of Polish debts. Predictably, Romania accounted for the largest portion of the recoveries, with KRUK being the unquestioned leader of that market; however, the contribution of new Western European markets, namely Italy, Germany and Spain, was also significant. And this is not the limit, because we are still expanding our operations in new markets. I believe that month after month will unlock further potential of our existing and future investments,” said Piotr Krupa.