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The company promises a dignified old age to pensioners but takes away their property illegally

Photoarchive of The Standart Those who walk the streets of Sofia's downtown cannot but notice the rundown apartment blocks with peeling facades. Their inhabitants are predominantly elderly people. It shows in crumbling window panelling and unkempt furniture. They cram their spacious apartments with old newspapers and card boxes selling this stuff to add something to their meagre pensions. The larger part of these old lonely people don't even dare giving rooms for rent because outsiders scare them  

There is an old saying in Bulgaria dating back to the times of the Ottoman rule: "When a Turk gains wealth he takes another wife, while a Bulgarian starts a new house." Bulgaria is a one in kind country in terms of very high percentage of private abodes. Over 98 percent of the Bulgarian population live in private homes, while in villages and smaller town 100 percent of residents live in their own houses. At a certain juncture, though, a private home turns into a burden and source of extra costs: for maintenance, renovations and taxes. At the same time the elderly are not inclined to sell their apartments and settle in the countryside where life is cheaper. Most of them have neither money nor physical strength for it   

Several months ago, a company emerged in Bulgaria that for the first time promised to pensioners a dignified old age, i.e. enough money, health care, social patronage and even clubs where they could get together with their peers. Hild Asset Bulgaria set only one condition - for lifelong care and allowance they want the pensioners to convey to the company their property rights. Hild made a flying start with a powerful advertising campaign, their clips are featuring the most popular Bulgarian actors aged over 65: Stoyanka Mutafova, Vassil Popov, Nikola Anastasov, Svetoslav Peev and Dimiter Manchev. Thus, even having in mind that the Bulgarians are not gullible people and normally do not trust those who promise them rose gardens, the first breakthrough was made. Thirty contracts have been sealed; twice as many are being prepared.    
Everything has been going on smoothly till news spread that Hild Bulgaria operates illegally and will be prosecuted. The company doesn't guarantee its clients' security, the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) is explicit.
The list of the company's infringements is long: their activity is actually called "life insurance" and the Bulgarian branch of Hild doesn't have a license for it. Neither does it have the mandatory capital of 6.4 million levs (1 euro=1.95 levs). Hild Asset Bulgaria has registered authorized capital of only 260,000 levs. They don't write off funds for technical reserve, a requirement envisaged by both the Bulgarian and European laws. The company clients' homes are illegally appropriated - a practice without precedent anywhere in the world. There is no information that financial giants like Merrill Lynch or Deutsche Bank London support the company.
At the same time, Hild Asset Bulgaria and Hild Bulgaria have a registration under the Bulgarian Commercial Law, which makes the company claim that they have even exceeded the required mandatory capital.
Both companies have declared purchase and sale of real estates as principal activity, i.e they have been registered as real estate brokers!
In four months - from February to May - Hild Bulgaria has been re-registered twice, and in June Hild Asset Bulgaria was established.
The Financial Supervision Commission offers several ways out of the situation. The first of them envisages that a company that signs contracts with the Bulgarian pensioners should fulfil the requirements of the Bulgarian Insurance Code and apply for a license for life insurance.
The second solution to the problem would be to make a contract with some of the Bulgarian insurance companies or to transform the company into a joint stock venture.
Otherwise, there's only one third variant, which is not recommended by either the Financial Supervision Commission or the Hild clients, and it's the company's withdrawal from the Bulgarian market.

Valeria Stoykova