GB00_erste lage_E - Erste Group

greater, since some of the staff cuts in 1999 were not made until the second half of the year
and thus were not fully reflected in the accounts until financial 2000.
Weighted according to the degree of employment (excluding employees on parental leave),
the headcount of the Erste Bank Group exhibited the following trend:
Number of employees
31 Dec 1999 31 Dec 2000
Austria 6,944 6,913
Česká spořitelna-Group * – 15,742
Abroad elsewhere 1,472 1,155
Total 8,416 23,810
* first-time consolidation in 2000
As per the end of 2000, an additional 261 employees (1999: 288 employees) were on staff at
non-bank subsidiaries, primarily in the hotel and leisure industry. The expenses for these employees
are included not under general administrative expenses, but rather under other operating
results, as is the income of these non-banks.
The staff reduction (excluding Česká spořitelna, a.s.) naturally includes the 160 employees
that were transferred to Steiermärkische Bank und Sparkassen AG as part of the branch transfers
effected in 2000.
Other administrative expenses show a growth rate of 26.8%, but remained unchanged year-on-
year in the adjusted figure. Office space and operating expenses were both down, whereas IT
costs moved higher.
Depreciation and amortisation of fixed assets climbed 46.9%, and even the adjusted figure
showed a rise of 11.2%, primarily due to IT investments.
Owing to this trend, the cost-income ratio fell from 70.1% in 1999 to 67.9%. Stripped of the
effects of consolidating Česká spořitelna, a.s., the figure was 67.1%. This is attributed to the
cost-cutting programme underway for the last two years and is in line with the target of 67% that
was set when Erste Bank went public in 1997.
Risk provisions for loans and advances amounted to EUR 161.9 million in 2000 (balance of
allocations and releases). This figure includes direct write-offs of loan losses and although it con-
stitutes an increase of 22.2% year-on-year, adapting the figure for Česká spořitelna, a.s. turns it
into a decline of almost 10%. Domestic business accounted for the major part of net additions
to risk provisions—even including Česká spořitelna, a.s.
Not included are the changes (netted in net interest income) in value adjustments of interest
receivables.
Erste Bank 2000 17