KBC Group was created in 2005 as a result of the merger of KBC Bank and Insurance Holding Company and its parent company, Almanij. KBC Bank & Insurance Holding Company itself was established in 1998 following the merger of three Belgian financial institutions. The Group's corporate history is a testament to the successful expansion into growth countries of Central and Eastern Europe which have joined the European Union in 2004, viz. Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republi…