GB00_erste lage_E - Erste Group

2000 CONSOLIDATED FIANCIAL STATEMENTS ACCORDING TO IAS
V. Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements
of the Erste Bank Group
Erste Bank der oesterreichischen Sparkassen AG is Austria’s oldest savings bank and largest
credit institution that is entirely privately owned. It is listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange and its
registered offices are located at Graben 21, 1010 Vienna, Austria.
Erste Bank Group offers a complete array of banking and financing services such as saving,
asset management (e.g. investment fund business), lending, mortgage loans, investment banking,
securities and derivatives trading, portfolio management, project financing, foreign trade financing,
corporate finance, capital market and money market services, foreign exchange trading, leasing,
factoring and insurance business.
The Consolidated Financial Statements of Erste Bank for the 2000 financial year and the comparative
figures for 1999 were prepared in compliance with the International Accounting Standards
(IAS) approved and issued by the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) and their
interpretations issued by the Standing Interpretations Committee (SIC), thus satisfying the prerequisites
set forth in Section 245a Austrian Commercial Code and Section 59a Austrian Banking
Act on exempted consolidated financial statements prepared according to internationally recognised
accounting principles. Furthermore, the disclosure requirements of the European Union were
met where necessary.
In 2000 Erste Bank branch offices located in the province of Styria were transferred to Steier-
märkische Bank und Sparkassen AG in exchange for a 14% stake. In addition, Erste Bank acquired
52.07% of the share capital (56.22% of the voting share capital) of Česká spořitelna, the second-
largest credit institution in the Czech Republic. In accordance with IAS, this investment was consolidated
as of 3 August 2000, the day the purchase agreement was concluded (closing day),
which restricts comparison of the Consolidated Financial Statements with those of the previous
year.
All IAS that are relevant for the banking group and already mandatory were observed. IAS 39
“Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement” is mandatory for financial statements for
financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2001. Consequently, the rules for recognition and
measurement stated in IAS 25 “Accounting for Financial Investments” were still applied.
The basic principle behind IAS 39 is to provide the most extensive valuation possible of financial
instruments at fair values. The necessary adjustments of current carrying amounts to current
fair values on 1 January 2001 are set off against equity.
72 Erste Bank 2000
General information