Romania has experienced unprecedented M&A activity in recent years, becoming one of the most active investment destinations in the CEE region. The EU accession in January 2007, strong economic growth, combined with relatively low labor costs for qualified personnel, sustainable domestic demand and an attractive fiscal system have proven to be significant competitive advantages over the past five years: the M&A market consistantly reached transaction volumes of EUR 6 billion per year, with an increasing number of transactions.

Raiffeisen Investment Romania was established in 1998 as a 100% subsidiary of Raiffeisen Investment AG in Vienna and since then has provided M&A advisory services to a long list of leading Romanian and Western European clients. In 2002, Britain's Euromoney business publication awarded Raiffeisen Investment AG the prize for the best mergers and acquisition company in Romania in recognition of the quality of the advisory services for the privatisation of Sidex Galati steel-mill in 2001.

Following its restructuring in 2004 and the appointment of Mrs. Ioana Filipescu as Managing Director the team has had three successful years and has re-emerged as one of Romania’s leading M&A franchises. Since reorganization, Raiffeisen Investment Romania has closed nine transactions and is currently working on several assignments on the Romanian market. In 2008, Raiffeisen Investment Romania acted as financial advisor in the largest private M&A transaction of the year in Romania, when the French insurer Groupama acquired Asiban, the largest independent and 3rd largest Romanian composite insurer, for EUR 350 million.

Raiffeisen Investment Romania has advised a number of top tier Western European clients, including Groupama, Advent, LNM Holdings, GM, KEG, Bridgepoint, Kronospan or EVN as well as leading Romanian corporate clients in the field of pharmaceuticals, media, IT, heavy industry etc. Over the years, Raiffeisen Investment Romania has acted as the advisor to the Romanian government on a number of successful privatizations.

The team advises both on sell-side and buy-side deals, the latter being mostly cross-border transactions whereby a foreign corporate client acquires a target company in Romania.