ROMANIAN BANK LENDING DURING THE FINANCIALCRISIS

This paper examines the effects of the financial crisis on lending within the Romanian banking system. Lending in Romania contracted significantly since the fall of last year for two reasons. On one hand, the central bank’s new crediting norms, that intended to limit borrowing risks, entered into force in October 2008 and forced banks to take extra-measures. On the other hand, the first signs of the economic crisis started to show in Romania at the same time and affected the lenders’ liquidity. The development of Romanian bank lending at the end of 2008 reflected the impact of both credit demand and especially credit supply.