EOS Newsroom

Less than half percent of debts arrives in cash to receivables-management companies, while the share of post cheque payments decreased from 55% to 33% in 2018. The share of bank transfers increased to 66% – according to the research of EOS Group.

One of the leading receivables management group, EOS Group analyzed several hundred-thousand unsecured claims, which were managed in 2018 in Hungary. Results show that Budapest is the only city where cash payments pass 2% mark (2.8%), every other county is far below 1% in this payment method. The share of bank transfers increased from 42% to 66% last year, resulting in a decrease in post cheque payments (from 55% to 33%).

Regarding the prioritization of the different kind of debts, similar to last year, bank debts are the first, then telco debts and other public services get paid at last. “Smartphones and internet access have become so important and deeply embedded in the different segments of the society that in several cases these services are more important to debtors than basic public services. While in the past year, we mostly saw this phenomenon in the age group between 20-40 years, now it is clearly visible in almost every age groups” – says Tamás Kraszna, head of unsecured pre-legal collection department at EOS Faktor Zrt.

It is important to mention, that the later the repayment starts, the bigger the charges became. 

In case of a 100 000 HUF bank debt, which has a yearly default interest of 10%, the following approximate costs will appear after one year of latency:

+ 10 000,- default interest

+ 5 000,- the cost of the payment order

+ 5 000,- law cost of the payment order

+ 5 000,- the cost of the bailiff

+ 4 000,- law cost of the bailiff

+ 16 800,- bailiff commission

+ 8 500,- cost of on-site execution

Total: 154 300 HUF, which is 50% more than the original claim.

„It is our common interest to get the debts repaid as easy as possible – in an acceptable way for both parties. As we can say in the mentioned example, latency might be expensive, so we suggest to get in contact with the owner of the debt as soon as possible. A receivables management company has more flexibility in the field of making the payments possible – for example, has the opportunity to provide an installment based on the possibilities of the debtor” – emphasized Tamás Kraszna.

The EOS Group

The EOS Group is one of the leading international providers of customized financial services. Its main focus is on receivables management covering three key business segments: fiduciary collection, debt purchase and business process outsourcing. With around 7,000 employees and more than 51 subsidiaries, EOS offers some 20,000 clients in 21 countries around the world financial security with tailored services in the B2C and B2B segments. Being connected to an international network of partner companies, the EOS Group has access to resources in more than 180 countries. Its key target sectors are banking, utilities and telecommunications, along with the public sector, real estate, mail order and e-commerce. For more information please visit: www.eos-solutions.com.

Press contact

János Körömi – Clue PR – koromi.janos@cluepr.hu

The Managing Director of EOS Faktor Zrt. will help bring about greater transparency and regulation on the Hungarian receivables management market

Every second Hungarian company is using a partner for receivables management.

Budapest – 19th February. – 8% of total business revenue comes from managing receivables, according to the European Payment Practices research of EOS Group. One of the leading receivables management companies in Europe asked 3400 company stakeholders in 17 European countries.

48% of Hungarian company representatives stated that their company is fully or partly outsourcing receivables management to professional companies or law firms. This rate does not show significant differences compared to last year, but it is higher than the European average (37%).

The revenue coming from receivables management is mostly used for expenses, which are supporting the performance of the Hungarian economy. 54% of companies use this money to pay their own invoices, 50% use it for protecting and creating jobs. A significant amount of companies (46%) is increasing their scope of activities, while 38% spend the amount for R&D activities. 24% stated that their companies are investing this revenue on the stock markets.

According to Tamás Kraszna, head of the unsecured collection department at EOS Hungary emphasized that proper and professional management of receivables might have numerous positive effects on the performance of the Hungarian economy. “The research clearly shows that this kind of revenue is mostly being used for activities that support the national economy, like creating new jobs and a new scope of activities or R&D. For EOS, it is a key priority to handle late payments in a way which does not have a negative effect on the relations between the company and its clients” – said Tamás Kraszna.

About the “European Payment Practices” study 2018 of EOS

In the spring of 2018, by the charge of EOS Group, the independent market researcher, TNS Kantar, asked about 3,400 financial experts in 17 European countries about the payment habits in their country. 200 decision-makers within the receivables management sector in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, the United Kingdom, France, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Croatia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Germany, Slovenia and Hungary responded the questions about the payments, economic trends and receivables management in the past 8 years.

About EOS Group 

The EOS Group is one of the leading international providers of customized financial services. Its main focus is on receivables management, in particular the three segments fiduciary collection, receivables purchasing and business process outsourcing. With its workforce of around 7,000 and more than 55 subsidiaries, EOS offers some 20,000 customers in 26 countries around the world financial security through customized services in the B2C and B2B segments. Working in an international network of partner companies, the EOS Group has resources in more than 180 countries. The company's key target sectors are banking, insurance, utilities, telecommunications, the public sector, real estate and e-commerce.
 

For more information please go to: www.eos-solutions.com.

Press contact:

János Körömi – PR manager – koromi.janos@cluepr.hu

Receivables management will be digitalized in the coming years

The companies see automatization and digitalization as the biggest challenges facing the industry.

Budapest – November 29, 2018 – According to EOS Group's study about European payment practices, 46% of companies consider automatization and digitization as the biggest challenges that the debt management profession will face over the coming years. Furthermore, 31% mentioned the big data, 26% said the cybercrime and according to 12%, the implementing of artificial intelligence are the key issues that the profession will have to deal with in the near future, according to the survey of 3400 experts surveyed in 17 countries.

Representatives of Hungarian companies were also asked about the consequences for their companies of late payments and unpaid bills. Respondents mentioned most often loss of profit (47%), payment problems (42%) and higher interest costs (38%). As a result of these consequences, 31% of companies respond by increasing prices, 27% to stop investing and 21% with dismissals and freezing of recruitment. 16% of Hungarian companies feel that their operation is in danger because of everyday payment problems.

Péter Thummerer, Executive Director of EOS Hungary, emphasized that the proper and professional management of claims is an important issue for the whole economy: “It is extremely important that we start dealing with late receivables as early as possible because the prospects are better than in a case of an older claim. Often, we can see that unpaid bills cause circular debt and even a whole chain of suppliers can get in trouble, which could possibly jeopardize hundreds or even thousands of jobs.” – said Peter Thummerer.

About the “European Payment Practices” study 2018 of EOS

In the spring of 2018, by the charge of EOS Group, the independent market researcher, TNS Kantar, asked about 3,400 financial experts in 17 European countries about the payment habits in their country. 200 decision-makers within the receivables management sector in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, the United Kingdom, France, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Croatia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Germany, Slovenia and Hungary responded the questions about the payments, economic trends and receivables management in the past 8 years.

About EOS Group 

The EOS Group is one of the leading international providers of customized financial services. Its main focus is on receivables management, in particular the three segments fiduciary collection, receivables purchasing and business process outsourcing. With its workforce of around 7,000 and more than 55 subsidiaries, EOS offers some 20,000 customers in 26 countries around the world financial security through customized services in the B2C and B2B segments. Working in an international network of partner companies, the EOS Group has resources in more than 180 countries. The company's key target sectors are banking, insurance, utilities, telecommunications, the public sector, real estate and e-commerce.
 

For more information please go to: www.eos-solutions.com.

From 1st November, dr. Katalin Koncz is leading the unsecured legal debt collection department of EOS Hungary

The expert with legal education has been working on complex and responsible tasks for 20 years. Before joining EOS Hungary, dr. Katalin Koncz has worked for several state-owned companies. In 2011, she started working in a leadership position by DHK Receivables Management company. 

During these years she was the head of receivables management and had an important role in the board of management. Thanks to her strategic approach, she developed a new process, which generated the same or even higher income from receivables with lower amount of investment. She also made the call center and the customer service of the company more profitable and client friendly.

Compared to last year, there was no significant change in payment morale – it was revealed by the latest research of EOS Group on European Payment Practices.

Budapest – 26th September, 2018 – 77% of the invoices are paid on time by Hungarian customers, so it can be said that the ratio has stabilized, which broadly corresponds to the regional average. Hungary has participated in the research for the sixth time this year, which was conducted by one of Europe’s leading receivables management companies and TNS Kantar research institute. In the survey, 17 countries, about 3400 decision-makers were asked about corporate and private customers’ payment habits.

There is no significant change in payment deadlines: in 2018, Hungarian companies issued their invoices with an average of 38-day payment deadline, just like a year earlier. The average payment deadline of invoices for private customers is 30 days, which is 10 days less than of invoices for business customers (40 days). In Hungary the payment deadlines are slightly longer than the Eastern European average (35 days).

In 2018, 19% of invoices were paid default – similarly to last year's rate, which is the same as the Eastern European average. If we look at the trends of recent years, there is a clear improvement in the payment habits of Hungarians, as in 2014, 74% of invoices were paid in time, while 21% were default.

The rate of bad debts is the same as last year, 4% of the invoices issued in Hungary are not paid at all, which shows a significant improvement of 2 percentage points compared to 2014.

Non-payment and late payment have similar reasons for private and business clients. Clients of the market players for the corporate sector mentioned the following causes of late payments and defaults: payment problems by other clients (54%), use of supplier loans (50%) and bankruptcy (46%); while 60% of non-paying individuals referred to financial problems and 45% to total insolvency. In the surveyed companies, intentional defaults were mentioned in 28% for business customers, and 40% met the problem in case of private customers. Beside intentional fraud, this ratio also involves dissatisfaction or the question of the invoice’s legitimacy.

Marianna Agárdi, Unsecured collection directorate of EOS Faktor Co. said: "This year's research shows that the positive payment behaviour of Hungarian customers has stabilized. Nevertheless, the rate of intentional default still remains fairly high. Debt collection of such debts is less effective with the companies’ internal receivables management methods and opportunities, so it could be helpful to involve an external, professional receivables management partner. External partners are employed by every second (48%) surveyed Hungarian company," said the expert.

There is 8% more debt connected to women than to men – according to the research of EOS Group.

The EOS Group has investigated hundreds of thousands of debts managed in 2017, and the research revealed that although the ladies have accumulated mobile debts in 8% more cases, their average value – HUF 18,963 – is lower than men’s debts, with an average of HUF 22,366. The difference in the number of debts has changed over the past few years: in 2016, only 1.6% was the difference in favour of women, while the average payments increased significantly by 17% for men and 15% for women. This could happen due to the fact that mobile communication plays an increasingly important role in everyday life, so the society is spending more and more money on it.

In terms of age groups, the most mobile debts are related to people between 40-59 years, in the case of both genders – broadly every second one. This data is confirmed the statement according to which mobile online presence has become so vital for the younger age group that they often pay their mobile bill before any other public services.

During the research, experts have also found a significant change in the communication’s mode, although the number of emails about debts is still not very high. In 2017, 1.2% of debtors kept contact with the debt management company via email, which is double of the value measured a year earlier. Although digitalization seems to have started in this area, the postal letter and the phone are still the main channels of communication.

According to Marianna Agárdi, director of EOS Faktor Zrt., the typically affected social groups try to handle their financial data carefully and cautiously and they use online financial services less frequently than the average, so they do not prefer the electronic forms of communication.

Hamburg, 10 July 2018 – Outstanding performance confirmed. For the 14th time in succession, EOS Holding has once again been given an ‘A’ rating by credit rating agency Euler Hermes Rating, providing renewed confirmation that the debt collection specialist enjoys a good credit standing. The auditors emphasized the company's market leadership in Germany and its strong market position in Western and Eastern Europe. The rating was also the result of the company's longstanding experience in processing non-performing receivables and in receivables purchasing.

“In the last financial year we have invested EUR 0.5 billion in receivables,” says Justus Hecking-Veltman, Member of the EOS Group’s Board of Directors and CFO. This shows how important this business segment continues to be for the EOS Group. “The acquisition of secured debt portfolios in particular is an attractive growth market for us,” explains Hecking-Veltman. This is also evident from the auditors' report, because this year Euler Hermes Rating specifically praised the company's ongoing expansion of expertise in real estate evaluation, development and realization. “We are now active in this business segment in eleven European countries and plan to expand into others.”

As a result, the auditors attested that EOS represents a low financial risk due to its very stable cash flow situation and continually high and consistent earnings level.

The EOS Group interviewed 3400 companies in connection with GDPR in 17 countries of Europe, including Hungary.

According to one of Europe’s leading receivables management companies, EOS Group’s research, 41% of European companies feel that the new EU data protection and data management regulation known as GDPR is a priority. 16% of respondents think that they are partly affected by the regulation, 25% consider it totally irrelevant to their business, and 11% did not even hear about it.

If we examine the countries of Eastern and Western Europe separately, we can see that the Western European countries take the regulation more seriously, 45% of the companies say that their activity is highly affected by GDPR, while only 39% of the Eastern markets have the same opinion. In the West, mostly the Danish companies (74%), while in Eastern Europe, Polish (46%), Hungarian (45%) and Croatian (42%) companies consider the new regulation relevant for their operation.

Overall, the surveyed Hungarian companies rather regard GDPR as their burden, 74% expect more administration, 73% expect more bureaucracy and more data management, however, 72% also expect more data security from the new legislation. Half of the companies (49%) think that GDPR will increase their spending/expenditure, while 30% of them feel that their current business model is also in jeopardy.

Dr. Gyula Papp, EOS Hungary’s Legal and Compliance Director said: “GDPR, of course, also affects corporate receivables management processes. More than half of the surveyed companies (58%) said that they would optimize their internal business processes and transform them under the new regulations.” – the expert highlighted.

Approx. the half percent of debts arrives in cash, post while post cheque payments decreased from 60% to 55% in 2017. The share of bank transfers is more than 50% in Budapest, Zala and Csongrád counties – according to the research of EOS Group.

One of the leading receivables management group, EOS Group analyzed several hundred-thousand unsecured claims, which were managed in 2017 in Hungary. Results show that Budapest is the only city, where cash payments pass 3% mark, every other county is below 1% in this payment method. The share of bank transfers increased from 37% to 42% last year, resulted in the decrease of post cheque payments (60% to 55%).

Regarding the prioritization of the different kind of debts, bank debts are the first, then telco debts, and at last other public services get paid. “Smartphones and internet access got so important and deeply embedded in the society that in several cases these services are most important to debtors than basic public services. This trend is clearly visible by the age group of 20-40 years” – says Marianna Agárdi, director of unsecured collection directorate at EOS Faktor Zrt.

It is important to mention, that the later the repayment starts the bigger the charges became. 

In case of a 100 000 HUF bank debt, which has a yearly default interest of 10%, the following costs will appear after one year of latency:

+ 10 000,- default interest

+ 5 000,- the cost of the payment order

+ 5 000,- law cost of the payment order

+ 5 000,- the cost of bailiff

+ 4 000,- law cost of bailiff

+ 16 800,- bailiff commission

+ 8 500,- cost of on-site execution

Total: 154 300 HUF, which is 50% more than the original claim.

„It is our common interest to get the debts repaid as easy as possible – in an acceptable way for both parties. As we can say in the example mentioned, latency might be expensive, so we suggest to get in contact with the owner of the debt as soon as possible. A receivables management company has more flexibility in the field of making the payments possible – for example, has the opportunity to provide an installment based on the possibilities of the debtor” – emphasized Marianna Agárdi.

From March, Tamás Lencsés, head of the Secured Debt Collection and Debtor Relationship Management, continues to work as a member of the Board of Directors and as a Managing Director.

From 1st of March, Tamás Lencsés joins Péter Thummerer, managing director, so the Hungarian subsidiary of one of Europe’s leading receivables management group – similarly to other EOS companies in the region – operates with dual management in the future. The expert also joins the Board of Directors of EOS Faktor Co.

Tamas Lencsés arrived to EOS Faktor Co. in September 2017 and he achieved great success with his team in a very short time. Among these, he played an important role in that EOS has performed its most valuable investments in Hungary in the past six months.

Péter Thummerer, EOS Faktor’s Chairman of the Board of Directors, said: “The following period has the potential to invest, so our Hungarian subsidiary, which has long been a stable and successful company, can continue to confidently contribute to the steady development of our group. We especially count on Tamás Lencsés’ expertise in this exciting period.”

From January, Marianna Agárdi leads the Unsecured Collection Directorate while Ferenc Nagy leads the Finance and Controlling Directorate at the debt management company.

Marianna Agárdi has completed management positions related to debt management and risk management at K&H Bank, CIB Bank and De Lage Landen Finance (DLL). In addition to her specialization in economics, she has a special SME finance qualification and she has been awarded several times for her leadership over the past few years.

Ferenc Nagy spent more than 15 years in BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions, five years as a Financial and Accounting Manager, and for the next 10 years as the Group’s Business Director. Ferenc Nagy has a master degree in Finance and Accounting and in Strategic Planning and Organization and he is also a Chartered Tax Advisor and Balance Accountant.