OTP Private Banking says it has recently embarked on an overhaul of its discretionary portfolio management services. This involves redefining the workflow to reflect topical industry themes, such as the focus on environmental, social and governance, as well as the implementation of what it describes as revolutionary new front-office software and a focus on increasing client alpha.

OTP Private Banking’s approach to digital development and innovation is predicated on a regional approach, helping the firm benefit from its presence across central and eastern Europe.

OTP Private Banking is putting resources into sustainability and showing signs of progress in the area. At a group level, improved scores by several environmental, social and governance ratings agencies are testament to its improvements in the area recently. For example, it moved from a medium- to low-risk ranking by Sustainalytics.

Over the past decade, OTP Group has grown as a regional bank in central and eastern Europe – even as other international banks have begun to retreat from the region. Listed in Budapest since 1995, the group now covers 12 countries, counting 17 million customers. Although it is headquartered in Hungary, it also considers itself a market leader in Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro and Slovenia in terms of the overall banking market, including retail.

OTP Bank recorded impressive growth in lending volumes during the awards period and has also advised on some landmark financings.

Despite the cross-border growth of Hungary’s OTP Bank and the regional potential of Romania’s Banca Transilvania, banking in central and eastern Europe is increasingly a national game.

Even rivals recognize that OTP Bank has advanced strongly in digital banking recently, ensuring that its technology wins and retains customers in Hungary and across central and eastern Europe.

A decade of work on reinforcing capital bases, managing bad debts, improving risk management processes and investment in technology paid off for the big regional banking groups in central and eastern Europe (CEE) during the first 12 months of the pandemic.

Strong fundamentals, generous Covid support and timely digital banking regulation mean that Hungary’s banks are in good shape for 2021.

Loan growth can return to double digits in second half of 2020, says deputy chief executive.

As part of Euromoney's 50th anniversary coverage, we profile some of the biggest names that we interviewed for our May CEE focus.

When western European banking groups went on spending sprees in the former communist bloc before the financial crisis, they met little competition from within the region. Few local lenders at the time had either the appetite or the capacity for large-scale cross-border expansion.

After a lot of provisioning and restructuring, CEE banks have returns on equity that others can only dream about.

NBG and Alpha speed up exits; private equity buyers appear.

Government moves squeeze domestic earnings; Foreign-derived profits rise to exceed 50%