The FINANCIAL  -- Romanian businessman Dinu Patriciu, jointly with former Georgian Prime Minister Vladimir Gurgenidze, bought Narodny Bank (Peoples Bank) of Georgia from Eurooil, a unit of RAKInvestment of the UAE, Interfax reported Wednesday.

The acquisition took place by a special-purpose vehicle set up by Patriciu and Gurgenidze.

Sources in the bank told Interfax that the bank's general manager, Zurab Tsulaya, would make an official announcement next week.

The Georgian financial supervisory confirmed that the bank was sold, but did not disclose details, Interfax also reported.

Eurooil representatives negotiated with four foreign groups interested in buying the bank. Earlier this year, they said a transaction might be closed in August, without naming the potential buyers.

UK-registered Eurooil bought a 65% stake in Narodny Bank of Georgia in January 2009, and later rose its stake to 89%.

Narodny Bank of Georgia was established in October 2002 and has 211 units countrywide. It was was the 337th biggest CIS bank by assets and the 27th biggest Georgian bank on the Interfax-1000: CIS Banks rankings.

Patriciu sold in June the remaining 25% stake in oil group Rompetrol in June to Kazakhstan-based KazMunayGaz, after selling two years ago a 75% stake to the Kazakh group for $1.6 billion.

The market value of the Rompetrol group was set at 3.616 billion USD, placing the value of the transaction at 2.712 billion USD.

Patriciu became a chairman of the board of the company.

According to Romanian local media Dinu Patriciu led an investor buyout of Rompetrol SA in 1998, served on the Supervisory Board of the company since its establishment, and took over as the full time CEO in 2001. Formerly, Patriciu acted as Chairman of the Investment Committee of the Romania and Moldova Direct Fund, LP, an American-managed private equity investment fund established in 1998 whose investors include the International Finance Corporation and the German Government-owned DEG.

Patriciu led Rompetrol from a state-owned Romanian oil services company into one of the top 25 oil operators in the European Union, principally through a program of strategic acquisitions and organic growth. This program started with the purchase of the Vega refinery (1999), continued with Petros SA (2000) and the purchase of a majority stake in Petromidia SA (2001), owner of the most modern refinery and petrochemical complex in Romania. Subsequently, TRG embarked on an international expansion program in the Balkan region, in Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine , as well as acquiring Dyneff Group SA of France,  the largest independent distributor of oil products in France, at the end of 2005. This latest acquisition, along with the development of its Swiss-based trading arm, Vector Energy, transformed TRG into a bridge between Eastern European natural resources and Western European energy demand.

Patriciu owns the Romanian daily Adevărul. As of August 2008, he was also in the process of buying the Ukrainian tabloid Blik from Ringier.

Between 1990 and 1996, and again from 2000 to 2003, Patriciu has served as a Member of the Romanian Parliament, being a leader of the National Liberal Party’s parliamentary group. He is a founding member of the National Liberal Party in Romania and initiator of the Free Initiative Foundation, the first Romanian NGO to support free initiative and reunite the business and political communities in an attempt to support civic development. A prominent liberal figure, Patriciu withdrew in 2003 from the Parliament and from active political life to concentrate on his business ventures. He was one of only three Romanian MPs to do so when new legislation made it incompatible for elected officials to also control significant business holdings. He remains attuned to the political life of Romania and is a keen supporter of pro-business and liberal development policies in the country.

Patriciu also serves as the Chairman of the Alliance of Romanian Employers’ Confederations, the Romanian member of UNICE, the Confederation of European Business. In addition to TRG, he is a shareholder in several entities including a building & real estate company and a media holding.

In 2005, following the investigations by the Anti-Corruption Office (PNA) and the General Prosecutor's Office, Dinu Patriciu was detained, but soon released.

Dinu Patriciu holds a master's degree from the Bucharest Institute of Architecture and has served as a professor there since 1975. He has received a number of architectural design awards in Romania and abroad. He has an extensive background in the real estate industry, having completed more than forty housing and commercial projects in Romania and more than 25 luxury residential complexes, offices and hotels in the United Arab Emirates. He was born in 1950, is married and has two daughters: Ana and Maria.

Dinu Patriciu

World's Billionaire, FORBES
#397

Net Worth: $1.8 bil
Fortune: self made
Source: refineries
Age: 58
Country Of Citizenship:Romania
Residence:
Industry: Oil
Education: NA,
Marital Status: married, 2 children

Onetime architect led investor buyout of previously state-owned oil company, Rompetrol, in 1998; took over as chief executive in 2001. Via acquisitions built the company into a $4.6 billion (sales) multinational refiner. In 2007 sold 75% of the group to Kazakhstan's state-owned energy operator, KazMunaiGaz; remains at the helm. Investing in real estate; in January bought Fabian Romania, a U.K.-listed property fund via his Black Sea Global Properties. Owns Adevarul Holding media trust, which publishes Forbes Romania under license from Forbes Media LLC. Former parliamentarian is member and key backer of the Romanian Liberal Party.

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