| Association of Volksbanks | |
| Type: | Private |
| Foundation: | 1850 |
| Location: | Vienna, Austria |
| Industry: | Finance and Insurance |
| Products: | Financial services |
| Num Employees: | 4,400 (2015) |
The Volksbank Group is a cooperative banking group in Austria, whose central entity is Vienna-based Volksbank Wien AG. It includes seven other regional banks as well as a specialized bank for the health professions in Austria. The group has been designated as a Significant Institution since the entry into force of European Banking Supervision in late 2014, and as a consequence is directly supervised by the European Central Bank.[1] [2]
There were 35 local Volksbanks in Austria by end of 2015, each of them organized as a cooperative or a corporation. By 2017 they merged to 8 regional banks and 2 specialized banks. They form an integrated system of banks (Association of Volksbanks) connected through a contract of collaboration. Volksbank Wien is the largest regional bank of the association and acts as central entity for the network.[3]
The central service functions were transferred from to Volksbank Wien AG in July 2015. ÖVAG itself surrendered its banking license.[4] The "remainder of ÖVAG" subsequently continued to operate as a wind-down entity under the name of immigon portfolioabbau ag. Immigon is responsible for ensuring the orderly, active and value-preserving wind-down of its assets.
The representative association of the Volksbank Group members is the (ÖGV), established in 1872.