Although it was founded only last year, Erste Asset Management has established itself as the number one player in its field in central and eastern Europe. Leveraging off the experience and distribution capabilities of the Erste Group, which outside its home market of Austria also operates in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia, Romania and Ukraine, EAM has access to Erste Group’s 16 million-strong customer base in the region and consequently boasts €32 billion of assets under management. Günther Mandl, executive vice-president, says that Erste Group’s 3,000 branches in the region give EAM a strong competitive advantage. "Our local presence and knowledge is a key strength – there are lots of cross-selling opportunities and our business model is geared towards keeping our number one position in a high-growth region." He adds that in addition to its retail distribution channels, EAM is well placed to exploit the development of the institutional investor market in the region, servicing the growing needs of pension funds, insurance companies and corporate treasury teams.