Raiffeisen International continues to expand its profits

- Consolidated profit of 401 million euros up by 39 per cent - Balance sheet total over 60 billion euros for the first time - Earnings per share of 2.82 euros up by 0.79 euros - Another record result for the second quarter of 2007 - Return on equity of more than 26 per cent stays on high level - Stable cost/income ratio at 57 per cent - Southeastern Europe generates highest profit contribution - Strong earnings increase of 74 per cent in Retail Customers segment - Largest distribution network of all western banks in CEE - Targeted consolidated profit for 2007 at least 750 million euros

Raiffeisen International Bank-Holding AG, which is part of the Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich AG (RZB) Group, continued its growth during the first half of 2007 and achieved once again the best quarterly result since the Group's inception – excluding last year's oneoff effects. Consolidated profit (after tax and minorities) rose by 38.8 per cent to 401.4 million euros (first half 2006: 289.2 million euros). Profit before tax for the first half of 2007 went up by 44.1 per cent to 606.6 million euros (first half 2006: 421.0 million euros), while profit after tax for the first six months of 2007 grew by 43.0 per cent to 477.0 million euros (first half 2006: 333.5 million euros). Earnings per share rose from 2.03 euros for the first half of 2006 to 2.82 euros. (All figures are based on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).) Raiffeisen International's business year in 2006 was influenced by two one-off effects – arising from the sales of Raiffeisenbank Ukraine and the stake in Bank TuranAlem – with a total positive impact on the full year consolidated profit of 588 million euros. To facilitate comparison of the first half of 2007 with last year, these one-off effects are not included in the comparison figures for 2006. Furthermore, changes in the scope of consolidation – the acquisitions of Impexbank in the second quarter of 2006 and eBanka in the fourth quarter of 2006 and the disposal of Raiffeisenbank Ukraine in the fourth quarter of 2006 – had an impact on earnings components. At the beginning of 2007, three asset management companies in Croatia, Slovakia, and Hungary were also included in the scope of consolidation for the first time because of materiality. Another record result for the second quarter of 2007 Raiffeisen International achieved a consolidated profit (after tax and minorities) of 208.8 million for the second quarter of 2007, which is another increase of 16.2 million euros or 8.4 per cent over the record result of the first quarter (first quarter of 2007: 192.6 million euros). Compared to the second quarter of the previous year, consolidated profit was higher by 43.8 million euros or 26.5 per cent (second quarter of 2006: 165.0 million euros). Herbert Stepic, CEO of Raiffeisen International, commented on the development of business and the result: "The optimization of our structures and our distribution power has been successful. Our continued dynamic growth shows that our customers also appreciate these efforts." Return on equity of more than 26 per cent stays on high level Compared with the first quarter, the return on equity (ROE) before tax improved slightly in the first half of 2007 to 26.6 per cent. Compared with the full year 2006, when the adjusted ROE amounted to 27.3 per cent, this represents a decline by 0.7 percentage points. The reason for this decline is the very high profit retention due to one-off effects which caused average equity to rise by 40 per cent to 4,567 million euros. The consolidated ROE (after tax and minorities) came to 20.3 per cent and was 1.1 percentage points below the value for 2006. The core capital ratio (Tier 1), banking book, which is of significance for assessing financial strength, amounted to 9.0 per cent (31 December 2006: 9.8 per cent). The core capital ratio (Tier 1), including market risk, amounted to 8.3 per cent (31 December 2006: 9.0 per cent). Significant increases in profit from operating activities Operating results increased in the first half of 2007, in some cases significantly, compared with the previous quarters. Quarterly operating profit amounted to 392 million euros, again the best result in the company's history. That is 98 million euros above the second quarter of 2006 and 36 million euros above the first quarter of 2007. In the first half of 2007, operating profit amounted to 749 million euros and thus grew by 38 per cent compared with 30 June 2006. Changes in the scope of consolidation had a net negative impact on earnings of 11 million euros. Altogether, operating income amounted to 1,751 million euros in the period ending 30 June 2007, which represents an increase of 36 per cent, or 465 million euros, compared to the same period in 2006. Net commission income grew by 38 per cent, or 157 million euros, to 572 million euros in the first half of the year. Consistently higher income from fees and commissions for nearly all banking products drove that increase. "I am satisfied with the development of our lower-risk commission business. While the share of net commission income in the overall operating income was only 21 per cent in fiscal year 2005, it has reached already 33 per cent in the current business year," said Martin Grüll, CFO of Raiffeisen International. At 37 per cent, growth of net interest income was only slightly below that of net commission income. Net interest income rose by 289 million euros to 1,079 million euros. Interest margins declined slightly year-on-year in Central Europe and Southeastern Europe, while an increase of 18 basis points was registered in the CIS. Groupwide, the interest margin went up by 14 basis points compared to this year's first quarter. Compared with the first half of 2006, trading profit rose by 11 per cent, or 8 million euros, to 79 million euros with varying development of results in the individual business areas and regions. Income from interest-based business increased significantly, while currency-based business declined slightly due to the exchange rate volatility of some CEE currencies and the US dollar. Stable cost/income ratio at 57 per cent General administrative expenses rose by 35 per cent to 1,003 million euros in the first half of 2007 and thus somewhat less than operating income. The cost/income ratio therefore improved by 1.8 percentage points compared with the full year 2006 and by 0.6 percentage points compared with the first half of 2006 to 57.3 per cent. The share of general administrative expenses attributable to staff expenses increased by 2 percentage points to 49 per cent, primarily due to higher staff costs in the CIS. Balance sheet total over 60 billion euros for the first time Raiffeisen International's balance sheet total increased by over 12 per cent in the first half of the year. The balance sheet total rose by 6.7 billion euros from 55.9 billion euros to 62.6 billion euros. Lending growth was again mainly responsible for this increase. Loans and advances to customers rose by 20 per cent from the beginning of the year to 41.9 billion euros on the reference date. Adjusted for impairment loss provisioning, lending to customers accounted for 65 per cent of the balance sheet total. The largest growth of the loan portfolio – in both absolute and relative terms – was recorded in the Group units of the CIS, with a plus of 31 per cent, or 3.1 billion euros. Funding was accomplished by means of customer deposits, on the one hand, which grew by 8 per cent to 35.7 billion euros, and by borrowing from international commercial banks, on the other. These liabilities to banks increased by 23 per cent to 16.9 billion euros. In the first half of the year, initial consolidations and exchange rate movements only had insignificant effects on business volume, amounting to just under one per cent of growth. Largest distribution network of all western banks in CEE During the period under review, Raiffeisen International further expanded its already extensive and dense distribution network. The number of business outlets went up by 108 units on balance during the first half of 2007. As a result, they now total 2,956. "On average, we open four new branch offices every week. We plan to open a further approximately 500 outlets by the end of 2009, primarily in Southeastern Europe and the CIS," said Stepic. Raiffeisen International once again significantly expanded its customer base during the first half of 2007. As compared to year-end 2006, the number of customers went up from 12.1 to 12.7 million. Segment reporting* Highest earnings contribution from Southeastern Europe Southeastern Europe registered by far the largest increase of profit before tax, with a plus of 90 million euros to 220 million euros. This increase is due to high cost efficiency in the region and low new allocations to provisioning for impairment losses. ROE before tax rose from 25.1 per cent for the first half of 2006 to 32.4 per cent for the period under review. At the same time, the cost/income ratio improved from 58.3 per cent to 55.4 per cent. Earnings also increased significantly in the other segments. In Central Europe, earnings before tax grew by 41 per cent, or 61 million euros, to 212 million euros. ROE before tax increased by 0.9 percentage points to 22.3 per cent, and the cost/income ratio went up by 0.6 percentage points to 59.4 per cent. In the CIS, strong organic balance sheet growth as well as the integration of Impexbank, which was consolidated for the first time in the second quarter of 2006, was primarily responsible for an earnings increase of 25 per cent, or 34 million euros; profit before tax reached 174 million euros. ROE before tax was 26.8 per cent (first half of 2006: 34.1 per cent), and the cost/income ratio amounted to 56.6 per cent (first half of 2006: 56.5 per cent). The largest part of consolidated profit before tax came for the first time from Group units in Southeastern Europe, with a share of 36 per cent (plus 5 percentage points). Central Europe was the second-largest earnings source with a 35 per cent share. The CIS accounted for 29 per cent of earnings. The shares of balance sheet assets attributable to the individual regional segments remained unchanged in comparison with June 2006. The balance sheet assets of Central Europe continue to dominate with a 40 per cent share of Group assets. That region is followed by Southeastern Europe with 32 per cent, and the CIS with 28 per cent. Compared to year-end 2006, however, the CIS increased its share by 3 percentage points. Strong earnings increase in Retail Customers segment Earnings before tax in the Retail Customers segment improved by 74 per cent to 223 million euros in the first half of 2007. This increase was due to significantly higher operating income. Net interest income rose by 41 per cent to 658 million euros. Net commission income from customer business with private individuals and with small and medium-sized businesses similarly contributed 39 per cent more to segment earnings and amounted to 363 million euros. The increase was due to a broader customer base, which partly resulted from the acquisition of Impexbank in the first half of 2006 and associated growth of business volume. The segment's share of total earnings rose to 37 per cent (first half of 2006: 30 per cent). The return on equity came to 29.1 per cent, which represents a plus of 4.0 percentage points. Compared with the first quarter of 2007, earnings improved again in the Corporate Customers segment and were 34 per cent above last year's level, amounting to 321 million euros at the end of the first half. That this increase could be achieved despite higher provisioning for impairment losses (plus 34 per cent) was due to improved operating profit. The cost/income ratio improved again by 1.1 percentage points to 34.7 per cent. At 92 million euros, the Treasury segment was only slightly below last year's result (minus 4 per cent). That was due to increased general administrative expenses and essentially unchanged operating income. Outlook and Targets Corporate customer business is again expected to make the largest contribution to overall profit in 2007. Raiffeisen International intends to intensify the focus on the mid-market segment this year. The focus within the fast developing retail division will be on further expansion of the Group's network of branch offices, the development of alternative distribution channels and the accelerated sale of asset management and insurance products. For 2007, Raiffeisen International targets a consolidated profit of at least 750 million euros. For the period to 2009, Raiffeisen International targets annual growth of its balance sheet total by at least 20 per cent. The largest increases should continue to come from the CIS despite the absence of Raiffeisenbank Ukraine. For the year 2009, the management has set the goal to achieve a return on equity (ROE) before tax of more than 25 per cent, a cost/income ratio of below 58 per cent and a risk/earnings ratio of about 15 per cent. To further strengthen its capital base to support additional growth, Raiffeisen International is currently evaluating the possibility of a capital increase. Depending on prevailing market conditions, a capital increase could be implemented within the next six months. *Raiffeisen International segments its business activities by both business fields (Retail Customers, Corporate Customers, Treasury, and Participations and Other) and regions (Central Europe, Southeastern Europe and CIS). Raiffeisen International's semi-annual report can be accessed under http://qr022007.ri.co.at. You can also order a printed copy there. * * * * * Raiffeisen International operates the largest banking network in CEE. 18 markets of Europe's growth region are covered by subsidiary banks, finance leasing companies, two representative offices and a number of other financial service providers. About 12.7 million customers are attended to through more than 2,950 business outlets. Raiffeisen International is a fully consolidated subsidiary of Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich AG (RZB), which owns 70 per cent of the common stock. The remaining 30 per cent is free float, the shares are traded on the Vienna Stock Exchange. RZB is a leading corporate and investment bank in Austria and the central institution of the Austrian Raiffeisen Banking Group, the country's largest banking group. For further information please contact Michael Palzer (+43-1-717 07-1504, michael.palzer@ri.co.at) or Lars D. Hofer (+43-1-71 707-1930, lars.hofer@ri.co.at). http://www.ri.co.at, http://www.rzb.at DISCLAIMER THIS DOCUMENT SERVES MARKETING PURPOSES AND CONSTITUTES NEITHER AN OFFER TO SELL NOR A SOLICITATION TO BUY ANY SECURITIES. A PUBLIC OFFER BY RAIFFEISEN INTERNATIONAL BANK-HOLDING AG (THE "COMPANY") HAS NOT YET TAKEN PLACE. ANY SECURITIES ORDERS RECEIVED PRIOR TO THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE OFFER PERIOD WILL BE REJECTED. IF AN OFFER IS MADE, A PROSPECTUS APPROVED BY THE AUSTRIAN FINANCIAL MARKET AUTHORITY IN AUSTRIA WILL BE PUBLISHED BY MAKING IT AVAILABLE AT THE COMPANY. 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Tags: euros first million improved higher slightly points percentage amounted these effects again before financial capital business compared increased under customer further offer persons securities central interest growth operating significantly period commission banking which share earnings result second return quarter billion total consolidated international profit balance sheet equity income distribution largest network banks raiffeisen segment customers southeastern ratio europe increase retail group