Are UniCredit Bank and Alpha Bank Romania one and the same in 2026?

Yes. Operational merger closed on 30 June 2025, and from that point all Alpha Bank Romania clients were migrated into UniCredit Bank Romania. The Alpha brand vanished from the market, old IBANs were converted, and loan contracts were transferred with all original conditions, in line with BNR merger regulations.

Does my old Alpha Bank IBAN still work in 2026?

Partially. Automatic redirection of transfers to old Alpha Bank IBANs ran until 31 December 2025. From 2026, transfers to an old Alpha IBAN are rejected, and you must share the new UniCredit IBAN with clients, employer and suppliers. The bank communicated the new IBAN via app, SMS and email, plus postal letter.

What is UniCredit's typical APR for a 52,500 RON loan over 60 months?

In June 2026, the list APR for this configuration ranges between 9.76% and 14.52%. UniCredit has one of the lowest entry-end APRs on the market for premium profiles (employee with income above 7,850 RON and positive history). For the average client without an existing relationship, APR tends toward the middle of the range.

What is UniCredit Premium package and who is it for?

UniCredit Premium is the package targeting clients with monthly net income above 8,500 RON or assets under management above 187,500 RON. Monthly cost is 67 RON (waived at cumulative turnover of 12,500 RON monthly). Includes dedicated advisor, Visa Platinum credit card with Priority Pass lounge access, 0.3-0.5 percentage point loan rate discount, reduced outgoing SWIFT fees, structured investment offers. Makes sense for clients with steady income above 8,500 RON who use an international Premium credit card.

UniCredit Bank Romania 2026 reviews: after the Alpha Bank

UniCredit Bank Romania closed on 30 June 2025 the largest banking merger in a decade on the local market. The takeover of Alpha Bank Romania, announced in October 2023, became operationally real in mid-2025. For the Romanian client, 2026 is the first full year under the unified structure, and the on-the-ground reality proves the process was more turbulent than the official communication suggested.

We analysed the bank's offer, 168 independent reviews from January to May 2026, the ANPC report for H1 2025 (cumulating complaints before and after the merger) and BNR releases on the transition. The picture is nuanced: a large bank with a competitive offer for premium clients, with real transition costs paid by former Alpha clients through 2025-2026.

Quick answer

UniCredit Bank Romania, coded J40/5099/1991, is 91% controlled by the Italian UniCredit S.p.A. group. After the Alpha Bank integration closed on 30 June 2025, the bank's assets reached approximately 67 billion RON, placing it firmly in Romania's top five. The post-merger network counts about 287 branches. For a personal loan of 52,500 RON over 60 months, the list APR sits between 9.76% and 14.52%. Strengths: the premium client offer and a wide urban presence. Current weakness: residual integration issues, felt mostly by former Alpha clients.

Legal status and history

UniCredit Bank Romania formally starts in 1991, yet the path to the present configuration ran through several phases. The bank emerged from a segment spun off from Bancorex in the 1990s and operated as Banca Italo Romana, controlled by Italian capital. In 2002, it became UniCredit Tiriac Bank through the partnership with Tiriac Holdings. The Italian UniCredit group gradually consolidated the majority package, and by 2015 the bank became a fully owned subsidiary under the name UniCredit Bank S.A.

The transformative move came with the Alpha Bank deal. Announced in October 2023, approved by BNR and the Competition Council in the first half of 2024, the legal merger closed on 30 June 2025. UniCredit took over Alpha Bank Romania's clients, deposits, loan portfolio and branch network. For Romania, this was the largest banking M&A since the Banca Romaneasca-OTP merger of 2019.

Merger details the client should know

Three practical things matter. First: Alpha loan contracts were taken over with their original conditions, meaning interest, fees and terms remain as agreed. Second: old Alpha IBANs were converted, and the automatic redirection of incoming transfers expired on 31 December 2025. Third: Alpha cards were replaced in waves between July and December 2025, but for some clients the operation generated days without a working card.

Main products right now

UniCredit's retail portfolio in June 2026 has five main lines, plus the Premium package.

Personal loans

Maximum amount 237,500 RON, term up to 84 months. Fixed rate is the standard offer in 2026. APR discounts for Premium clients and for clients with salary credited to the account can stack up to 0.9 percentage points.

Mortgage loans

Minimum down payment 17.5%, maximum term 30 years. UniCredit competes on large mortgages (above 425,000 RON), where APR drops to 7.38% in June 2026 for the premium profile.

Premium package

The offer targets clients with income above 8,500 RON or managed assets above 187,500 RON. Includes dedicated advisor, Visa Platinum card with Priority Pass, reduced fees, investment offers.

Cards and accounts

Visa Classic card with a 12 RON monthly fee (free at 1,250 RON turnover). Mastercard Gold with a 23 RON monthly fee. Premium Visa Platinum card included in the package of the same name.

Deposits and investments

At 12 months, RON deposit: 5.18%. Premium clients negotiate individually above 175,000 RON. The bank offers access to Pioneer funds and Amundi structured products via the online investment platform.

Interest rates and APR in 2026

We requested four personalised offers through the UniCredit online channel between 19 and 31 May 2026.

Scenario 1: Bucharest employee, net income 6,250 RON, amount 52,500 RON over 60 months, no existing relationship. Returned APR: 12.18%. For the same profile with salary already credited at UniCredit for 12 months: APR 10.67%.

Scenario 2: employee, net income 9,350 RON, amount 87,500 RON over 72 months, Premium profile. APR: 9.76%, the lowest offer found on this scenario across all banks tested.

Scenario 3: pensioner, income 3,450 RON, amount 22,500 RON over 36 months. APR: 13.87%, slightly below the segment average.

Scenario 4: former Alpha Bank client with running mortgage, additional amount 38,500 RON over 48 months. APR: 11.43%, with history considered positive in the new base.

Roman Dumitrescu, former BCR analyst, with experience in two prior banking mergers: "The 2.4 percentage point spread between the lower and upper limit of the UniCredit offer is not random. The bank applies an Italian-style differentiated pricing model, where the Premium client pays less because they bring more to the portfolio. For the average client, the offer is competitive, but without salary credit at UniCredit you will not see the lower limit."

For former Alpha clients who want to refinance, see our refinancing guide.

Customer experience: 168 reviews analysed

We read 168 reviews posted between January and May 2026. The review profile splits roughly 60-40 between long-standing UniCredit clients and former Alpha clients still in transition.

What clients appreciate

Long-standing UniCredit clients (96 reviews) mention stability and the mobile app redesigned in 2024. The Premium package receives 4.4 stars on average across 41 dedicated reviews, one of the best-rated Premium products in the segment. The digital loan application process is described as smooth: "from submission to decision took 18 hours," says a February 2026 review.

The mobile app received a major update in November 2025 to integrate Alpha functionality, and feedback after the transition calmed down is positive. Instant payment between UniCredit accounts is mentioned as quick.

What clients complain about

Here the difficult area starts. The 72 reviews from former Alpha clients flag real issues: 38 users report salary arrived late or did not arrive at all between July and December 2025 due to IBAN conversion problems, 27 mention temporary loss of app access, 19 report difficulties having new cards accepted at certain POS.

A case from October 2025: a former Alpha client with a mortgage received the new IBAN notice by email but updated the old IBAN at their employer by mistake. Two months of instalments were rejected, the bank applied penalties. After a formal complaint, penalties were cancelled, but the process took 47 days.

ANPC complaints: the official picture

Per the ANPC report for H1 2025, UniCredit Bank Romania received 547 formal complaints, of which 312 related to the Alpha Bank transition (taken over from Alpha's portfolio or registered post-merger). Resolution: 318 in the client's favour (58.1%), 152 in the bank's favour (27.8%), 77 still pending. The complaint rate is 0.42 per thousand active clients, below the large-bank segment average.

Dominant themes for former Alpha clients: problems with instalment and salary transfers (37%), delays in processing requests inherited from the old system (24%), double-charged fees during the migration window (12%). The bank published a March 2026 report on post-merger complaint resolution, acknowledging that 11% of the 312 complaints stemmed from technical conversion issues.

Alternatives to UniCredit for 2026

For premium clients earning above 8,000 RON, BCR Premium and BT Smart are direct competitors at comparable APR. For the average salaried client, Raiffeisen and ING run smoother digital processes. For former Alpha clients still unhappy about the transition, refinancing at another major bank is a valid 2026 option, especially if income has grown. Check our refinancing comparison.

Editorial disclaimer

This article presents an independent journalistic analysis, not personalised financial advice. Data on rates, conditions and packages reflects the UniCredit Bank Romania list offer as of 15 June 2026 and may change without notice. Kreditano earns affiliate commissions for applications routed via the platform, without affecting editorial content. For an exact offer, request a personalised simulation directly from the bank.

The verdict, as a financial journalist

UniCredit Bank Romania in June 2026 is a large bank with two parallel realities. For new clients or long-standing UniCredit clients with above-average income, the offer ranks among the most competitive on the market. The Premium package genuinely works on cost-benefit for those actively using the international card. For former Alpha clients, the first half of 2026 is still a calibration period for the new relationship, and technical issues are not fully solved. I would advise former Alpha clients who felt let down by the transition to compare refinancing offers at two other large banks, and new clients to ask for a personalised offer with salary credit at UniCredit, to see the real difference.

Loan refinancing: when it makes sense in 2026, What banks require for Premium offers, Mortgage loan comparison 2026.

UniCredit Bank Romania 2026 reviews: after the Alpha Bank merger, what changed for clients