Download - Volksbank AG

Letter from the Board of Management
members of the German and continental banking community. The purpose of this Frankfurt branch
office is not only to network with other underwriting partner banks, but also to directly extend
loans to medium-sized companies. Another function of Investkredit´s Frankfurt branch office is to
serve as a window of opportunity for developing innovative products, which we as a specialist
bank would like to offer to our clients with a head-start and, if possible, also with qualitative advantages.
The many successful international alliances of Investkredit in the past years encourage us to redefine
ourselves as a specialised banking group with a Central European focus. This evolutionary
step represents a new and fascinating challenge for all employees. Having established an understanding
of Investkredit as an investment bank, they can deal confidently with the fact that we have opened
the doors even wider to let in new products and market possibilities, and to catch a breath of the
fresh air of international competition.
The Corporate Communications team responsible for the entire public appearance of the company is
now facing the same challenges as the staff at Accounts and Controlling, which was confronted with
preparing financial statements under the newly introduced International Accounting Standards (IAS),
the Legal Department responsible for all contracts, and the Personnel Department that now deals
with an international staff. A specialised bank thrives on the vigorous collaboration and integrity
of a dedicated and competent staff. We would like to thank all employees for their strong
commitment to our mission.
We wish to assure all our shareholders and business partners that we shall do our utmost to perform
even better in the current business. The specific goal is to attain total assets of EUR 12.7 bn and to
increase the ROE before taxes to over 15%. In the area of credit risk management, measures have
been taken to keep default risks within bounds even if the difficult economic environment continues.
Raising the dividend (including bonus) to EUR 1.00 for 2001 is a sign of our conviction that the
strategy taken by Investkredit will lead to sustained sound results.
Our special thanks go to Alfred Reiter, who for many years was the CEO of Investkredit, and until the
end of the business year successfully managed the business of the bank. His readiness to delegate
great amounts of responsibility to employees outstanding both in their jobs and as co-workers was
decisive for the growth and development of new business in all areas of long-term finance. We are
very happy that Alfred Reiter will continue to assist us as an advisor with his vast experience and
critical insights.
Wilfried Stadler Klaus Gugglberger
THE BANK FOR CORPORATES
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