ROCA Investments reaches valuation of EUR 78 million five years after launch

By Deniza Cristian

Paolo Vivona is the new General Manager & CEO and Chairman of the Management Committee at Intesa Sanpaolo Bank Romania. Vivona has over 33 years of experience in banking and business development, including 24 years in management positions. The bank’s new General Manager & CEO has solid expertise in international banking markets, based on know-how he gained at different banks with successful business models and strategies and strong organisational cultures.

ROCA Investments, a brand founded by Impetum Group and the most dynamic private equity company in Romania, has reached a portfolio value of EUR 78 million after five years of operation, marking a significant growth of 50 percent compared to its previous valuation in December 2021 and reporting an annualised return (IRR) of 39 percent to its shareholders. Founded in 2018 with fully Romanian capital, ROCA

Investments has so far completed five capital increases totalling EUR 43.75 million, signed 20 transactions, and made 2 exits.

Between 2018 and 2022, ROCA Investments increased its annual invested amount from EUR 4.19 million in 2018 to EUR 34.67 million in 2022, demonstrating the company’s strong commitment to Romanian entrepreneurial companies.

“The gap between east and west is still unjustifiably large in terms of the roles investment funds and private equity companies play in the economy, although the last few years have brought developments across all markets on this front. However, this gap is a major opportunity for growth, and the results achieved by ROCA Investments in the five years since its launch stand as proof. Our objective going forward is to make the company a relevant player for specialised investors in western Europe and thus to attract even more new capital to Romania. We remain true to our mission of focusing on strategic sectors of the national economy—industry and agriculture are key for the country’s economic development in the coming years—and investing exclusively in Romanian companies, with the aim of creating regional champions,” says Rudolf Vizental, the CEO and co-founder of ROCA Investments. page 5

Catalin Vasile has been appointed as the new Chief Sales Officer at NN Romania. He has valuable knowledge of the Romanian financial services industry and broad expertise in the development of strategic initiatives. Throughout his career, he has been involved in operational development and sales process digitalization in companies such as ING Bank, Trend Consult, and mindit.io, contributing to building new sales capabilities, transforming distribution, and improving customer experience.