BRD review 2026: what I found after 7 years of editorial coverage

The essentials

• BRD is listed in the Trade Register under number J40/68/1991, controlled by Societe Generale (60,17%).
• Typical APR on personal loans: between 9,68% and 15,21% in June 2026.
• Physical network: 617 branches, the best top-4 coverage in Oltenia and southern Muntenia.

Who it is and who owns it

BRD was privatised in 1999 by selling the majority stake to Societe Generale, with the French bank taking effective control in March 2001.

Since then, BRD has run on a shared IT system with the SocGen network in Central and Eastern Europe, which explains the similarity of the Mobilo app with its equivalent in Poland.

In the Trade Register, BRD appears under J40/68/1991 with paid-in share capital of 696.901.518 lei.

Shares trade freely on the Bucharest Stock Exchange under the symbol BRD, with a market capitalisation that hovered around 14,3 billion lei during 2025.

What is on offer in 2026

BRD runs a complete retail range: the Expresso personal loan up to 153.000 lei, the Habitat mortgage with APR starting at 6,73% in the 5-year fixed version, CashPower refinancing that consolidates up to 4 external loans, the Visa Gold card with LoungeKey access at 22 European airports.

For young clients, the flagship product remains BRD Sprint, an overdraft line with a flexible ceiling between 1.300 and 4.700 lei, promotional rate 0% for the first 90 days. After the promo period, the nominal rate climbs to 17,82% per year, putting the product in direct competition with the Star credit card from Garanti BBVA.

Interest rates and APR in 2026

the public simulator in May 2026 through the BRD online platform: personal loan 38.700 lei over 60 months. Annual nominal rate: 8,93%. Total APR: 9,68%. Fixed monthly instalment: 813 lei. Total cost above the borrowed amount: 10.080 lei.

On the Habitat mortgage, the 5-year fixed rate sits at 6,73%, followed by IRCC plus margin 2,07 percentage points from month 61. For a loan of 327.000 lei over 25 years, the instalment in the first five years comes to 2.241 lei. Life insurance with assignment to the bank is optional, but the attached rate discount is 0,18 percentage points.

Alternatives to BRD for 2026

For a cheap personal loan, ING Bank drops the APR to 9,28% for clients with income above 7.300 lei. For a mortgage with free early repayment, Banca Transilvania scrapped the fee in October 2025. If you want a fully fee-free current account, Revolut Bank Romania remains the most visible option, but without physical branches.

Editorial verdict

BRD is the logical choice for someone who wants a bank with a solid physical network in less urbanised provinces and a mature mobile app. The weak points stay the call centre and the rigid policy on closing tied products. I recommend it without hesitation for mortgages and for PFA with a clean history. For under-26 clients, Sprint is worth testing during the promo period.

Related articles

• What APR is and how it is calculated
• When refinancing makes sense
• PFA credit in Romania

In BRD's documents I checked the initial instalment separately from the total repayment. An easy-to-read monthly figure does not show the full cost by itself.

Before choosing, I record the analysis fee, insurance cost and final repayment separately, using the same term for both alternatives.

Bogdan Baicu, Senior Editor