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Illustration: Kevin February |
Tomas Spurny has a business card emblazoned with ‘Moneta Money Bank’. His head of communications still has one bearing a GE logo. In mid-July, two months after its IPO, the bank is still rebranding. By the end of September, however, all signs of Moneta’s former parent should have been wiped out – and with them, the last traces of GE’s retail banking network in Europe.
For Spurny, the US group’s pullback from financial services has been a boon. Not only has it allowed him to return to his native Czech Republic after a 13-year absence, it has also given him the opportunity to lead a healthy bank – a pleasant change for a man who has spent most of his career rescuing troubled ones.
“The quality of Moneta’s franchise was a major factor in my decision to take on the role of CEO,” he says. “In relative terms, it is one of the most profitable banks in Europe, with a very strong balance sheet and excellent corporate governance and risk management frameworks.”
The numbers speak for themselves. Return on equity last year was 16.5%,
