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KBC Group is a Belgian universal multi-channel bank-insurer, focusing on private clients and small and medium-sized enterprises in Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It was created in 1998 through the merger of
Kredietbank KBC Group is a Belgian universal multi-channel bank-insurer, focusing on private clients and small and medium-sized enterprises in Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It was created in 1998 through the merger of Kredietbank ...
(KB), the cooperative , ABB Insurance, and Fidelitas Insurance. The acronym KBC refers to KredietBank and CERA. KBC Group is one of Belgium's major companies and the second largest bancassurer in the country. As of late 2020, it was the 15th largest bank in Europe by
market capitalisation Market capitalization, sometimes referred to as market cap, is the total value of a publicly traded company's outstanding common shares owned by stockholders. Market capitalization is equal to the market price per common share multiplied by t ...
and a major financial player in Central and Eastern Europe, employing some 41,000 staff (of which more than half in Central and Eastern Europe) and serving 12 million customers worldwide (some 7 to 8 million in Central and Eastern Europe). KBC is a
Forbes Global 2000 The ''Forbes'' Global 2000 is an annual ranking of the top 2000 public companies in the world, published by ''Forbes'' magazine. "The Global 2000" annual ranking is assembled by ''Forbes'' using a weighted assessment of four metrics: sales, profi ...
company. The group is controlled by a group of core shareholders, and has a free float of approximately 60%. The core shareholders include KBC Ancora, a listed company controlled by CERA (or , a holding company formed by the cooperative clients of CERA Bank at the time of the 1998 merger), owning 19%; MRBB (), a vehicle of the
Boerenbond The Boerenbond (Dutch, or german: Bauernbund; literally "Farmers' League") is a professional association of farmers active in the Flemish and German-speaking communities of Belgium. Founded in 1890 and based in Leuven, the Boerenbond is an org ...
farmers' association, at 12%; a group of industrialist families, at 8%; and CERA directly, at 3%. Its shares are traded on the
Euronext Euronext N.V. (short for European New Exchange Technology) is a pan-European bourse that offers various trading and post-trade services. Traded assets include regulated equities, exchange-traded funds (ETF), warrants and certificates, bonds, de ...
exchange in Brussels.


Background


Volksbank van Leuven, local savings banks and Middenkredietkas

On , a group of prominent Catholics founded the ("People's Bank of Leuven"), a cooperative bank to finance the development of business in and around
Leuven Leuven (, ) or Louvain (, , ; german: link=no, Löwen ) is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the historic ...
. In the early 1890s, the
Boerenbond The Boerenbond (Dutch, or german: Bauernbund; literally "Farmers' League") is a professional association of farmers active in the Flemish and German-speaking communities of Belgium. Founded in 1890 and based in Leuven, the Boerenbond is an org ...
farmers movement, similarly inspired by Catholicsm and
corporatism Corporatism is a collectivist political ideology which advocates the organization of society by corporate groups, such as agricultural, labour, military, business, scientific, or guild associations, on the basis of their common interests. The ...
and also based in Leuven, led the development of burgeoning network of rural cooperative banks inspired by the model created in Germany by
Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen (30 March 1818 – 11 March 1888) was a German mayor and cooperative pioneer. Several credit union systems and cooperative banks have been named after Raiffeisen, who pioneered rural credit unions. Life Friedrich Wilh ...
. The first of these ("savings and loans associations") was created in 1892 in the village of near
Aarschot Aarschot () is a city and municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises the city of Aarschot proper and the towns of Gelrode, Langdorp and Rillaar. On January 1, 2019, Aarschot had a total popul ...
. By 1895, there were 24 ; that year, the Boerenbond established the
Middenkredietkas KBC Group is a Belgian universal multi-channel bank-insurer, focusing on private clients and small and medium-sized enterprises in Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It was created in 1998 through the merger of Kredietbank ...
("central credit fund") as a central body to help them manage their customers' savings and access funding from the (CGER, "General Savings and Pension Fund"), a national financial institution. In 1902, the network had grown to 190 local savings banks, and would further expand to 378 by 1913 and 1099 in 1934. In 1903, the Middenkredietkas decided to reduce its exclusive dependence on the CGER and established a permanent relationship with the Volksbank van Leuven for the management of some of the farmers' savings.


Algemene Bankvereeniging, Bank voor Handel en Nijverheid, Almanij

After
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the Middenkredietkas strengthened its structural cooperation with the Volksbank van Leuven, which in 1919 had transformed itself into a joint-stock company. The two institutions jointly sponsored the creation or acquired control of several other banks in Dutch-speaking Belgium, including the
Algemeene Bankvereeniging KBC Group is a Belgian universal multi-channel bank-insurer, focusing on private clients and small and medium-sized enterprises in Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It was created in 1998 through the merger of Kredietbank ...
(ABV, "General Banking Association"), founded in 1921 in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
, and two banks named (BHN, "Bank for Trade and Industry") respectively in
Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...
and
Kortrijk Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Regio ...
. On , ABV and the Volksbank van Leuven merged. The new entity, which kept the name Algemeene Bankvereeniging, was controlled by the Middenkredietkas; in 1930 it acquired BHN Ghent, which in the meantime had merged with a number of other local banks in
East Flanders , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of Oost-Vlaanderen.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van O ...
, and in October 1931 purchased another financial group, the also known as . The latter combination resulted in the creation in 1931 of the holding company
Almanij Almanij (for ''Algemene'' ''Maatschappij'' voor ''Nijverheidskrediet'', "General Company for Industry") was a Belgian holding company active in financial services, created in 1931 and merged into KBC Group in March 2005. History Almanij was inco ...
in Antwerp, which received a number of industrial company stakes. As a consequence, the Boerenbond-controlled banking cluster became one of Belgium's largest credit institutions, able to rival the
Banque de Bruxelles Bank Brussels Lambert (BBL, french: Banque Bruxelles Lambert) was a Belgian bank that was created through merger in 1975 and became part of ING Group in 1998. It provided retail and commercial banking services to individuals and businesses in Belgi ...
and
Generale Bank Fortis, formally Fortis N.V./S.A., was a Benelux-centered global financial services group active in insurance, banking and investment management, initially formed in 1990 by a three-way Belgian-Dutch merger and headquartered in Brussels. It grew ...
. The Boerentoren high-rise building in Antwerp, financed by ABV, was the second-tallest skyscraper in Europe at the time of its completion in 1931, just behind Madrid's
Telefónica Building The Telefónica Building, in Spanish ''Edificio Telefónica'', is a skyscraper in Madrid, Spain. It is located in Gran Via 28. At the time of construction it was the tallest European skyscraper with 89 m of roof height, until in 1940, when the ...
(1929). It became the symbol of the Boerengroup's financial might, to the dismay of some of the Catholic clergy including Cardinal
Jozef-Ernest van Roey Jozef-Ernest van Roey (13 January 1874 – 6 August 1961) was a Belgian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Mechelen from 1926 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1927. He was significant fig ...
who feared that the farmers' movement was drifting away from its religious roots and towards commercialism.


Kredietbank

With financial stress increasing in the early 1930s, however, the Middenkredietkas accumulated losses and had to declare a moratorium on its liabilities on , followed on by a highly publicized liquidation process. The restructuring, including a reimbursement of depositors that would only be completed in 1963, was directly managed by the Belgian government and led by Albert-Édouard Janssen. On , ABV and BHN Kortrijk merged to form the , commonly known as
Kredietbank KBC Group is a Belgian universal multi-channel bank-insurer, focusing on private clients and small and medium-sized enterprises in Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It was created in 1998 through the merger of Kredietbank ...
(KB). The Kredietbank was registered in Antwerp but its actual head office was established in
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
.
Fernand Collin Fernand Collin ( Antwerp, 18 December 1897 – 11 December 1990), was a Belgian businessman. He was president of the Kredietbank from 1938 to 1973 and was also a professor at the Catholic University of Leuven. At the start of World War II, Fernand ...
, who became its president in 1938, defined the Kredietbank as an independent bank with a decidedly
Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
character which would be an instrument to further Flemish economic growth. In 1943, Almanij, which had become Kredietbank's majority owner during the 1935 restructuring, underwent a capital increase. As a consequence, the Middenkredietkas (in liquidation) became a minority shareholder, and the control of the group was transferred to a group of families later known as the "Almanij Syndicate", which by the 1970s included Collin and
André Vlerick André, Baron Vlerick (1919–1990) was a Belgian politician, businessman, professor and founder of the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School. He graduated in economy at the University of Ghent and was appointed at the University of Leuven as well ...
, a son-in-law of
Gustave Sap Gustave Charles Sap (21 January 1886 – 19 March 1940) was a Belgian politician and minister for the Catholic Party. Sap was also professor at the Catholic University of Leuven (Leuven, Belgium). During his professional career, he was active in ...
who had been associated with the Algemeene Bankvereeniging since its creation. In 1949, Kredietbank established its first international subsidiary, Kredietbank SA Luxembourg (known as KBL). In 1951, Kredietbank's shares began listing on the
Brussels Stock Exchange The Brussels Stock Exchange (french: Bourse de Bruxelles, nl, Beurs van Brussel), abbreviated to BSE, was founded in Brussels, Belgium, by decree of Napoleon in 1801. In 2002, the BSE merged with the Amsterdam, Lisbon and Paris stock exchang ...
, even though Almanij retained control. In 1952, Kredietbank expanded into the
Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (french: Congo belge, ; nl, Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964. Colo ...
by establishing a branch in
Léopoldville Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...
, then in 1954 acquired and renamed it Kredietbank-Congo. That operation grew into four branches, in
Léopoldville Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...
(now
Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ln, Kinsásá), formerly Léopoldville ( nl, Leopoldstad), is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once a site of fishing and trading villages situated along the Congo River, Kinshasa is now one o ...
),
Bukavu Bukavu is a city in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), lying at the extreme south-western edge of Lake Kivu, west of Cyangugu in Rwanda, and separated from it by the outlet of the Ruzizi River. It is the capital of the South Kivu pr ...
, Elizabethville (now
Lubumbashi Lubumbashi (former names: ( French), (Dutch)) is the second-largest city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, located in the country's southeasternmost part, along the border with Zambia. The capital and principal city of the Haut-Katanga ...
), and Stanleyville (now
Kisangani Kisangani (formerly Stanleyville or Stanleystad) is the capital of Tshopo province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the fifth most populous urban area in the country, with an estimated population of 1,312,000 in 2021, and the larg ...
), but was discontinued in 1966 following Belgian Congolese independence in 1960. In 1958, Kredietbank expanded into
Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...
through the acquisition of local banks, which it merged in 1961 into a newly formed subsidiary named . Kredietbank further built up its international network in the late 1960s, with the opening of offices in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
and
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
, then in
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
,
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
,
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
,
Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...
,
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
,
Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
, and
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, and branches in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
,
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, the
Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territory—the largest by population in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located to the ...
, and a subsidiary in
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
. In 1970, together with six other European institutions, Kredietbank established the
Inter-Alpha Group of Banks The Inter-Alpha Group of Banks was created in 1971 by six banks in the European Community to provide a platform for the regular exchange of ideas and to explore areas for cooperation between its member banks. The group is a non-hierarchical associat ...
. In 1979, controlling ownership of KBL was transferred from Kredietbank directly to Almanij. In 1982, Kredietbank acquired majority ownership of ''Bankverein Bremen AG'', originally founded in 1889 as ''Bremer Vorschussverein'', and renamed it ''Kredietbank-Bankverein AG'' in 1990, also known as or BKB. In 1996, KBL absorbed . In 1997, Kredietbank expanded into
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
through the privatization of
K&H Bank K&H Bank or ''Kereskedelmi és Hitelbank'' is one of the biggest commercial banks in Hungary, owned by KBC Bank of Belgium. K&H Bank has total assets of HUF 2 826 billion and K&H is one of the leading financial institutions in Hungary in terms o ...
.


ABB and CERA

During the Middenkredietkas's liquidation in March 1935, the Boerenbond renamed its rural cooperatives as , and formed a new central body in Leuven, the (CKL, "Central fund for agricultural credit"). In 1941, its insurance operations developed since the late 19th century were renamed (ABB, "Belgian Farmers' Union Insurance") and in the following decades became one of the largest Belgian insurers. The number of Belgian Raiffeisen banks was about 800 in the early 1970s, then further decreased through consolidation to reach 218 in 1996. In 1970, the CKL changed its name to ("Central Raiffeisen Fund"), which in the late 1970s was abbreviated to CERA; it moved from downtown Leuven to an expansive new office campus in the city's outskirts in 1991. In the mid-1980s, a new legal framework led to the creation in 1986 of CERA Bank as a fully-fledged central banking entity.


1998 Merger and subsequent history

On , CERA Bank, ABB, and Fidelitas (the insurance arm of
Almanij Almanij (for ''Algemene'' ''Maatschappij'' voor ''Nijverheidskrediet'', "General Company for Industry") was a Belgian holding company active in financial services, created in 1931 and merged into KBC Group in March 2005. History Almanij was inco ...
) merged into Kredietbank NV, whose name was changed to KB ABB Cera Bank and Insurance Holding Company NV. On , the group's parent entity was renamed KBC Bank and Insurance Holding Company NV. On , that was shortened to KBC Group NV simultaneously with merger with
Almanij Almanij (for ''Algemene'' ''Maatschappij'' voor ''Nijverheidskrediet'', "General Company for Industry") was a Belgian holding company active in financial services, created in 1931 and merged into KBC Group in March 2005. History Almanij was inco ...
, the former holding company. In 1999, KBC acquired majority control of
Československá obchodní banka Československá obchodní banka, a.s. (ČSOB) is one of the largest commercial banks operating in the Czech Republic. It is a universal bank that offers a full range of banking services to individuals and companies. It operates 280 ČSOB brand ...
, a prominent bank in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. In 2001-2002 it took control of in Poland. By 2007, it had made further acquisitions in Bulgaria (DZI Insurance, DZI Invest and EIBANK), Romania (KBC Securities Romania, Romstal Leasing and INK Insurance Broker), Russia (Absolut Bank), and Serbia (KBC Banka and Senzal, Hipobroker, and Bastion). In 2008, it purchased Istrobanka in Slovakia from
BAWAG BAWAG (German language: ''Bank für Arbeit und Wirtschaft'') was a bank in Austria founded in 1922. On October 1, 2005, it merged with the separate ''Österreichische Postsparkasse'' (P.S.K.) to form the "Bank für Arbeit und Wirtschaft und Öste ...
. During the late-2000s financial crisis the stock price dropped from 106€ on 18 May 2007 to 5€ on 6 March 2009, a loss of 95% over a period of 22 months. The bank needed and received support from the
Flemish government The Flemish Government ( nl, Vlaamse regering ) is the executive branch of the Flemish Community and the Flemish Region of Belgium. It consists of a government cabinet, headed by the Minister-President and accountable to the Flemish Parliament, a ...
for an amount of several billion Euros. After the crisis the bank embarked on a divestment programme to satisfy the requirements of the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
. As such, it sold several subsidiaries, including Centea, Fidea, Kredyt Bank, ADB, KBC Deutschland, Absolut Bank and
KBL European Private Bankers Quintet Private Bank is a medium-sized Luxembourg-headquartered bank and wealth manager, founded in 1949 as Kredietbank Luxembourg (KBL), later rebranded KBL European Private Bankers or KBL ebp, and to its present name in 2020. Since 2011, it has ...
, the latter being acquired by Precision Capital, owned by
Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber bin Mohammed bin Thani Al Thani ( ar, حمد بن جاسم بن جبر آل ثاني; born 1959), also known informally by his initials HBJ, is a Qatari politician. He was the Prime Minister of Qatar from 3 April ...
, for a reported €1.05 billion in October 2011 and renamed
Quintet Private Bank Quintet Private Bank is a medium-sized Luxembourg-headquartered bank and wealth manager, founded in 1949 as Kredietbank Luxembourg (KBL), later rebranded KBL European Private Bankers or KBL ebp, and to its present name in 2020. Since 2011, it has ...
in 2020. The divestment programme was completed in 2014 and the state aid entirely paid back by 2015, five years ahead of the agreed schedule. Since then the KBC share price recovered to around a maximum of €75 in the month of January 2022. In 2017, KBC acquired
United Bulgarian Bank United Bulgarian Bank (UBB) is one of the leading Bulgarian commercial banks. It is the first and largest banking consolidation project in Bulgaria, accomplished through the merger of 22 state-owned commercial banks throughout the country. UBB was ...
(UBB) and Interlease in Bulgaria. In February 2017, Ireland was defined as a new core market of KBC Group, but in April 2021, KBC entered into talks with Bank of Ireland to sell its performing loan book and announced its intention to withdraw from Ireland. As of 2022, the KBC group is focused on five countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia.


Structure and main subsidiaries

KBC Group NV is the direct parent company of: *KBC Bank NV *KBC Insurance NV All other KBC Group companies are direct or indirect subsidiaries of these. The main ones are shown in the table: BEL = Belgium Business Unit, CZR = Czech Republic Business Unit, IMA = International Markets Business Unit, GRP = Group Centre.


KBC Bank NV

KBC Bank is the main subsidiary. Its first home market is Belgium, where it is one of the top three banks, with a 20-25% market share and over three million customers (counting the customers of the subsidiaries in Belgium). Its second home market is Central Europe, served via subsidiaries and investments in the Czech Republic ( ČSOB),
Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
(ČSOB and OTP Banka), Hungary (
K&H Bank K&H Bank or ''Kereskedelmi és Hitelbank'' is one of the biggest commercial banks in Hungary, owned by KBC Bank of Belgium. K&H Bank has total assets of HUF 2 826 billion and K&H is one of the leading financial institutions in Hungary in terms o ...
) and
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
(CIBank and UBB Bank). In all of these countries, KBC Bank is a leading player by market share. It also has a substantial presence in Ireland through its subsidiary
KBC Bank Ireland KBC Bank Ireland plc is a bank in Ireland with offices in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, Waterford and Belfast. It was established in 1972 as ''Irish Intercontinental Bank''. In 1978 KBC Bank, which is headquartered in Brussels, acquired a 75% ...
(formerly IIB Bank), which is a major player in both the corporate and residential mortgage markets there. In all, KBC Bank has established a presence in some thirty countries around the globe. KBC
Project Finance Project finance is the long-term financing of infrastructure and industrial projects based upon the projected cash flows of the project rather than the balance sheets of its sponsors. Usually, a project financing structure involves a number of equi ...
is a subsidiary of KBC Bank, and has been an active player in the non-recourse financing of projects since the early 1990s. Headquartered in
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
, it also has professionals based in London, Brussels, New York, Hong Kong, and Sydney. Its main business lines are Energy and Infrastructure. This includes financing projects in sectors such as the oil & gas industry, power,
renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...
, and Public-Private Partnership. It has a portfolio in excess of US$5bn, financing approximately 250 projects worldwide. KBC Bank also has investment banking operations in Europe, US and Asia. A specialist arm called KBC Financial Products operates primarily in global convertible bonds; its branch in Japan is called KBC Securities Japan, which specialises in secondary equity broking,
convertible bond In finance, a convertible bond or convertible note or convertible debt (or a convertible debenture if it has a maturity of greater than 10 years) is a type of bond that the holder can convert into a specified number of shares of common stock in ...
s, warrants, and
equity derivative In finance, an equity derivative is a class of derivatives whose value is at least partly ''derived'' from one or more underlying equity securities. Options and futures are by far the most common equity derivatives, however there are many other ty ...
s.


Notable buildings associated with KBC


Leuven

* The ornate former building of Volksbank van Leuven on , now named after Boerenbond co-founder
Joris Helleputte Joris or Georges Helleputte (1852 – 1925) was a Belgian politician and neo-Gothicist architect. He served as Minister of Agriculture and Public Works and Minister of Railways, Post and Telegraphs. Early life and education Helleputte was born t ...
, was erected in 1912–1913 on a design by architects Frans Jr. Vermeylen and . In 1925, the bank annexed the former Hotel d'Eynatten on nearby Eikstraat to be the residence of the bank's director. The complex, later enlarged at the corner of Boekhandelstraat, was purchased by CERA in 2007 from the City of Leuven as its headquarters, for which it erected an award-winning new corner building completed in 2018. * The former office park of CERA outside Leuven, designed by and inaugurated in 1991, is now offices of KBC Group.


Antwerp

* The former head office of Algemeene Bankvereeniging in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
was a 19th-century mansion reconverted as bank headquarters in 1921–1922 on a design by architect . It was demolished in 1980 to make space for the extension of the , a Catholic school. * The Boerentoren or "KBC Tower" in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
was erected by
Algemeene Bankvereeniging KBC Group is a Belgian universal multi-channel bank-insurer, focusing on private clients and small and medium-sized enterprises in Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It was created in 1998 through the merger of Kredietbank ...
in 1931, initially mostly as a residential building. It was transformed into offices in the late 1960s and used by Kredietbank, then KBC from the 1970s to the 2010s. * The former seat of Almanij in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
, in the historic Snyderhuis (or Snijdershuis) adjacent to
Rockox House The Snijders&Rockox House ( nl, Snijders&Rockoxhuis) is a museum in Antwerp, Belgium. It is located in two neighbouring townhouses formerly owned by the artist Frans Snyders (1579–1657) and the mayor Nicolaas Rockox (1560–1640). It is ow ...
on Keizerstraat, is now offices of KBC's Private Banking division.


Kortrijk

* The
art deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
former seat of Bank voor Handel en Nijverheid on Leiestraat 21 in
Kortrijk Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Regio ...
has been repurposed as an annex of
Kortrijk City Hall The City Hall (Dutch language, Dutch: ) of Kortrijk is situated on the main square of the Belgium, Belgian city of Kortrijk/Courtray. The facade of the late-Gothic, early Renaissance city hall is adorned with the statues of the Counts of Flanders ...
.


Brussels

* The former Brussels head office of Kredietbank, then KBC on rue d'Arenberg, 7, was originally built in 1912 by
Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG (), sometimes referred to simply as Deutsche, is a German multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York Sto ...
on a design by , with sculpture by Georges Vandevoorde, on the location of the former offices of the Balser private bank which Deutsche had purchased two years earlier. It was acquired by Volksbank van Leuven from the Belgian state in 1928, following the post-WWI termination of Deutsche Bank's activity in Belgium, and revamped for ABV by architect in 1929–1932. KBC left it in stages in the 1990s, and it is now an office complex of the
Flemish Government The Flemish Government ( nl, Vlaamse regering ) is the executive branch of the Flemish Community and the Flemish Region of Belgium. It consists of a government cabinet, headed by the Minister-President and accountable to the Flemish Parliament, a ...
known as . * The
art deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
on Rue des Poissoniers / Visverkopersstraat 13 in Brussels, designed by architect and completed in 1931 * The current head office of KBC Group and KBC Bank on Havenlaan 2 in Brussels, was erected in the 1990s to consolidate teams that had been scattered in numerous locations in the city.


Art collection

The private art collection of KBC is situated in the
Rockox House The Snijders&Rockox House ( nl, Snijders&Rockoxhuis) is a museum in Antwerp, Belgium. It is located in two neighbouring townhouses formerly owned by the artist Frans Snyders (1579–1657) and the mayor Nicolaas Rockox (1560–1640). It is ow ...
in Antwerp.


Awards

In 2019, Harvard Business Review ranked KBC's CEO Johan Thijs as the 8th best performing CEO in the world.


Controversy


Support for apartheid in South Africa

One of Kredietbank's main shareholders in the postwar period,
André Vlerick André, Baron Vlerick (1919–1990) was a Belgian politician, businessman, professor and founder of the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School. He graduated in economy at the University of Ghent and was appointed at the University of Leuven as well ...
, was actively involved in public advocacy of the
Apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
-promoting regime of
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
and support of its circumvention of sanctions. In April 2018, NGO
OpenSecrets OpenSecrets is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that tracks data on campaign finance and lobbying. It was created from a merger of the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) and the National Institute on Money in Politics (NIMP). ...
, in partnership with the Centre for Applied Legal Studies (CALS) at the
Georgetown University Law Center The Georgetown University Law Center (Georgetown Law) is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment and ...
, filed a complaint at the
OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate e ...
, claiming that KBC and KBL had violated the Organization's Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises in their dealings with South Africa between 1977 and 1994. According to the complaint, KBC and KBL together "were responsible for facilitating up to 70% of all illegal arms transactions that allowed the apartheid government to secretly buy weapons despite mandatory UN arms sanctions." As part of that process, OpenSecrets and CALS submitted a detailed document to the OECD contact points in Belgium and Luxembourg to support their claim. At the same time, hearings were held on the matter at South Africa's People's Tribunal on Economic Crime led by
Zak Yacoob Zak may refer to: People * Zak (surname), a surname of Russian origin * Żak, a Polish surname * Žák, a Czech surname * Zak (given name) Fictional characters * Zak Adama, in the '' Battlestar Galactica'' franchise * Zak Dingle, in UK TV ''Emme ...
in
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
.


Terms of the 1998 merger

In December 1999, the Brussels commercial court ordered CERA Holding to pay an additional 2.48 billion euros to its cooperative shareholders, based on the finding that their contribution had been undervalued in the 1998 merger.


Investment in coal

KBC has been criticised for its investment policies regarding fossil fuels. According to a 2015 report by Belgian NGO Fairfin KBC invested US$2.4 billion between 2004 and 2014 through loans and emitting shares and obligations. In contrast the money allocated to renewable energy was only US$929 million. When KBC reviewed its sustainability policy in 2016, the
Global Network A global network is any communication network which spans the entire Earth. The term, as used in this article refers in a more restricted way to ''bidirectional'' communication networks, and to technology-based networks. Early networks such as in ...
of
Non-governmental organisation A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from g ...
cooperating in the field of private banks and sustainability, Banktrack published an analysis acknowledging progress made on fossil fuels, while criticising the exception for the Czech Republic where the bank continues to finance coal, saying “the new general restriction on coal is welcome and positive, however the exception applied to Czech coal companies is concerning." In 2017 the Belgian Climate Coalition published a report charting the investments in fossil fuel of the four major banks in Belgium (KBC, ING, BNP Paribas and Belfius). In this report they attacked the exception for the Czech Republic as well,saying “the exceptions for coal activities in the Czech Republic don’t comply with the strict deadlines imposed by climate science.”


See also

*
Paul Borghgraef Paul Borghgraef (born 13 July 1954) is a Belgian businessman. He is a son of Theo Borghgraef and Suzanne Collin, who is a daughter of Fernand Collin. He is a member of the board of directors of the KBC Group. Early life He obtained a degree in ...
*
Fernand Collin Fernand Collin ( Antwerp, 18 December 1897 – 11 December 1990), was a Belgian businessman. He was president of the Kredietbank from 1938 to 1973 and was also a professor at the Catholic University of Leuven. At the start of World War II, Fernand ...
* Luc Debaillie *
Frank Donck Frank Donck is a Belgian businessman. He is a member of the business club De Warande and director of KBC Group. He is a son of Jef Donck, who owned Comelco, which was sold to Campina. Biography He graduated from Ghent University as a licentia ...
*
Gustave Sap Gustave Charles Sap (21 January 1886 – 19 March 1940) was a Belgian politician and minister for the Catholic Party. Sap was also professor at the Catholic University of Leuven (Leuven, Belgium). During his professional career, he was active in ...
*
Jozef Van Waeyenberge Jozef Van Waeyenberge is a Belgium, Belgian businessman. He is a son of Camille Van Waeyenberge and a brother of Piet Van Waeyenberge one of the founders, and currently president, of De Warande (Club), De Warande. After he finished high school, ...
*
Remi Vermeiren Remi Vermeiren (born 23 February 1940 in Dendermonde) is a Belgian banker and businessman. Education He went to high school at the Royal Athenaeum of Dendermonde and graduated as licentiate in commercial and financial sciences at the Hoger institu ...
, former president *
Philippe Vlerick Philippe, Baron Vlerick (born 8 June 1955), is a Belgium, Belgian businessman. He was born in Kortrijk, the son of Lucien Vlerick and Thérèse Vandewiele. He is a nephew of André Vlerick and married to Patricia Bouckaert. Career He is chairman ...


References

* Van der Wee, Herman and Van der Wee-Verbreyt, Monique, ''People Make History: The Kredietbank and the Economic Rise of Flanders, 1935-1985'', Brussels, Kredietbank, 1985.


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kbc Bank Financial services companies established in 1935 Banks established in 1935 Banks of Belgium Companies based in Brussels Companies listed on Euronext Brussels Investment banks Investment management companies of Belgium Multinational companies headquartered in Belgium Belgian brands Banks under direct supervision of the European Central Bank