“In terms of the ease to do business, the World Bank places Georgia in 11th place. We [Romania] rank 55th. The Georgian economy is so liberal that this country in the Caucasus will become a new Switzerland.”
When asked if he expects a profitability rate higher than in real estate or media, the businessman said: “I plan to invest in things I enjoy. I enjoy starting a new restructuring with my partner, Lado Gurgenidze, like so many other restructurings I have engaged in. We know very little about countries such as Georgia, Malaysia, Rwanda, Botswana, and many others, about 20-25 countries in which the principle of governing actually leads to prosperity.”
Regarding the possibility of him further investing in the Romanian financial sector, Patriciu said that he will only invest in Romania when this country is determined to progress, and tries to be a free market economy, with no constraints. The reason is not related to low risk investments, but rather to “growing with economies that grow. If GDP [gross domestic products] in such extremely liberal countries grows 10 percent, the population’s deposits increase 50 percent.”
However, the businessman said that there will be opportunities in Romania in the coming two-three years, in real estate, when things start to stabilize, and rents, construction and sales prices will reach different levels. “I do not believe that a square meter of construction of housing units in Romania can cost more than an average €700,” Patriciu said. The businessman allocated a nine-figure amount for investments, and the highest value of a single project is an eight-figure amount.
Referring to Georgia, the businessman said that the country has one civil servant to 75 inhabitants, compared to one civil servant to 13 inhabitants in Romania, indicating that doing business in Romania is more expensive. In terms of the time needed to double an investment in Romania compared to Georgia, Patriciu said that it probably takes two times less in Georgia than in Romania. “In the case of the Popular Bank of Georgia, a tripling in three years is doable,” the investor said.
The acquisition of the Popular Bank of Georgia was brokered by the Liberty Investment Holding fund, and the seller was the Eurooil company, subsidiary of RAK Investment.
