Vienna Insurance Group (VIG) has signed an agreement with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, to acquire - subject to regulatory approval - approximately 10% of the common shares in its Romanian pension fund company Carpathia Pensii.

According to VIG, the strategic partnership is intended to promote the expansion of voluntary pension fund provision in Romania.

The transaction deepens a long-term cooperation between VIG and IFC that was established in Central and Eastern Europe. At the end of 2022, IFC acquired a stake of around 10% in Doverie, VIG's Bulgarian pension fund company. In December 2025, both partners signed an agreement on capital increases, under which IFC intends to acquire around 20% of the Ukrainian VIG companies USG and Kniazha. With the now agreed entry into Romania, VIG and IFC are providing a further important growth impetus for voluntary funded pension provision.

"We are delighted to be extending our already successful partnership with IFC to the Romanian market. IFC's planned participation in our Romanian pension fund company strengthens our position in the local pension market and will support Carpathia Pensii's product development and digitalisation strategy. Together, we will take important steps to strengthen voluntary pension provision in Romania, which is still underrepresented despite positive growth dynamics", commented Peter Höfinger, Deputy Chairman of the Vienna Insurance Group and VIG Board member responsible for Romania.

“Private pensions empower people to save for the future, strengthen financial stability, and spur capital market development — key for emerging markets and ageing societies”, said Vittorio Di Bello, Director of the Financial Institutions Group for Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean at IFC. “By mobilizing long-term savings into productive long-term investments, they directly and indirectly support job creation and economic growth. Our planned investment in Carpathia Pensii aims to broaden access to voluntary pensions and support market development through digital innovation and financial literacy”, Vittorio Di Bello added.

The World Bank can be seen as the ‘intellectual architect’ behind the introduction of a multi-pillar private pension system. The first reform initiatives were launched based on this theoretical model as early as 1994, and in Romania, the actual implementation took place between 2006 and 2008. After around 18 years of contributions to the private pension systems (Pillar 2 and Pillar 3), the pension funds manage assets of over EUR 40 billion to provide Romanians with additional income in retirement.

Carpathia Pensii - Societate de Administrare a Fondurilor de Pensii Private S.A., part of VIG and based in Cluj, has been active on the Romanian market since 2007. With assets under management of more than EUR 4 billion, it is the fourth-largest pension fund company in Romania and serves more than one million customers, the press release says.