ATEbank announces that one of its strategic decisions is the expansion in the Balkans, the Black Sea and the Eastern Mediterranean countries, either through the acquisition of a majority stake or through the participation in the share capital of a foreign bank. As an initial step in that direction, ATEbank has signed a preliminary agreement to acquire a majority stake in the Romanian MindBank. ATEbank is in the process of a due diligence procedure in MindBank aiming at completing the transaction within a month.