First Investment Bank

First Investment Bank, commonly branded as Fibank, is a Bulgarian commercial bank established on 8 October 1993. It serves individuals and corporate customers through a domestic network of branches and offices and operates as the principal institution of a wider financial group with activities in several Balkan markets. The bank’s Bulgarian business includes retail banking, corporate banking and payment-related services, while its regional presence has included a branch operation in Albania, a branch in Cyprus, and a subsidiary bank in North Macedonia, UNIBank. The group also controls CaSys International, a card- and payments-oriented company based in Skopje. The bank is one of Bulgaria’s significant privately controlled financial institutions. Reference material identifies Tseko Minev and Ivaylo Mutafchiev as its principal shareholders, each holding 31.36% of the share capital as of June 2025. The Bulgarian Development Bank held 18.35%, while the Valea Foundation held 7.87% at the same point in time. These ownership figures describe the bank’s capital structure rather than establishing that any of these parties founded the institution. Fibank’s core franchise is domestic. The bank has been described as maintaining 21 branches and 68 offices across Bulgaria, serving approximately 380,000 individual customers and 21,000 corporate bodies. Its offering is therefore oriented toward conventional banking relationships: deposits and accounts, lending, payments, cards and related services for consumers, entrepreneurs and companies. The international components of the group extend this platform into neighboring and connected markets, particularly through the North Macedonian subsidiary and the group’s payments infrastructure. According to the cited Wikipedia reference, First Investment Bank ranked as Bulgaria’s fifth-largest bank by total assets and market share in the fourth quarter of 2024. The same reference reported approximately €8 billion in total assets and an 8.2% market share for that period. These figures are time-specific and should not be treated as current without a newer source. Overall, Fibank is best understood as a Bulgarian banking brand with a sizable domestic distribution network, a regional Balkan footprint and an ownership structure involving private shareholders alongside a state development-bank investment.

First Investment Bank was founded in Bulgaria on 8 October 1993. It developed as a commercial banking institution serving both private individuals and businesses, building a nationwide operating presence rather than limiting itself to a single specialist segment. Its domestic model combined customer-facing offices with conventional banking services such as accounts, deposits, lending, cards and payments. Over time, the institution became the core bank of a broader financial group with operations beyond Bulgaria. The group established or maintained a branch presence in Albania, including a network of 10 offices, and a branch in Cyprus. In North Macedonia, its regional structure includes UNIBank, a subsidiary bank. The group also controls CaSys International, an international card operator based in Skopje. These businesses expanded Fibank’s presence from Bulgarian retail and corporate banking into cross-border banking and payment infrastructure in the Balkans. In Bulgaria, the bank’s distribution system has been described as comprising 21 branches and 68 offices. Its stated customer base includes approximately 380,000 individuals and 21,000 corporate bodies, indicating a business spanning mass-market retail customers, entrepreneurs and larger corporate relationships. The bank’s activities are consequently broader than a narrow investment-banking franchise despite its historical name; its principal identity is that of a full-service commercial bank. The ownership structure has included substantial holdings by private shareholders and a strategic stake by the Bulgarian Development Bank. As of June 2025, the cited reference listed Tseko Minev and Ivaylo Mutafchiev as holding 31.36% each, the Bulgarian Development Bank holding 18.35% and the Valea Foundation holding 7.87%. The available material does not establish the founders’ identities or provide a complete account of changes in ownership over the institution’s history. By the fourth quarter of 2024, First Investment Bank was described as Bulgaria’s fifth-largest bank by total assets and market share. The cited figures were approximately €8 billion in assets and an 8.2% market share. Because these are period-specific measurements, they provide historical context rather than a current financial statement. The available reference material does not provide enough detail to document a complete chronology of management changes, product launches, campaigns, regulatory events or controversies. Fibank’s documented trajectory is nevertheless that of a Bulgarian bank founded in the 1990s that grew into a nationally significant institution with a multi-country Balkan financial and payments network.

• 2025

  Shareholding figures reported

  [1]First Investment Banken.wikipedia.org

  Figures cited for June 2025 showed major holdings by Tseko Minev, Ivaylo Mutafchiev, the Bulgarian Development Bank and the Valea Foundation.

• 2024

  Fifth-largest Bulgarian bank by reported assets and market share

  [1]First Investment Banken.wikipedia.org

  For the fourth quarter of 2024, the cited reference reported approximately €8 billion in assets and an 8.2% Bulgarian market share, placing the bank fifth nationally on those measures.

• 1993

  Bank founded

  [1]First Investment Banken.wikipedia.org

  First Investment Bank was established in Bulgaria on 8 October 1993.

• Regional financial group developed

  [1]First Investment Banken.wikipedia.org

  The bank became the central institution of a group with operations in Albania, Cyprus and North Macedonia, including UNIBank and CaSys International.

A major Bulgarian commercial bank combining a broad domestic branch network with regional Balkan banking and payment operations.

• Consumer banking

  Retail banking

  Fibank serves individual customers through its Bulgarian branch and office network. The documented retail scope includes ordinary banking relationships such as accounts, deposits, personal borrowing, cards and payment services. The available reference does not provide a sufficiently detailed product catalogue or named retail products.

• Business banking

  Corporate banking

  The bank serves corporate bodies and businesses alongside retail customers. Its corporate-banking role covers the conventional needs of business clients, including operating accounts, financing and payments. Specific sector programs, pricing and product names are not documented in the supplied reference material.

• Payments

  Cards and payment services

  Card and payment activity forms part of the bank’s operating scope and is reinforced at group level by CaSys International, an international card operator based in Skopje. The available material does not specify individual card products, networks or launch dates.

• International banking

  Regional banking operations

  The wider group has operated outside Bulgaria through an Albanian branch network, a Cyprus branch and UNIBank in North Macedonia. These operations extend the group’s banking presence across Balkan markets, although the supplied sources do not describe their individual product portfolios in detail.

1. 1First Investment Banken.wikipedia.org