UPDATE 1-Austria could adjust terms of bank measures -cbank
* C.bank Gov says talked to EU Competition Commissioner
* Says several "levers" could be adjusted
* "Levers" include coupon, repayment, rights issue
(Adds more quotes, details)
VIENNA, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Austrian central bank governor Ewald Nowotny said on Friday that some of the terms under which Austria is providing capital injections for its banks, including Erste Group Bank (ERST.VI), could be adjusted.
Following talks with European competition commissioner Neelie Kroes last week, Nowotny said there were several "levers" that could be used, including terms for interest payments, repayment and dividend policies.
Erste last month agreed with the Austrian government a 2.7 billion euro ($3.4 billion) capital injection with an annual coupon of 8 percent, which Kroes has said "could be a problem" under European Union state aid rules. "There are several levers that you could adjust. The interest rate is just one of them," he said. "The Commission aims for common principles but that does not mean common, concrete (interest) rates."
"The question whether repayment is at 100 percent (or more) -- that's another lever," he said, referring to the Dutch government's capital injection in ING Groep (ING.AS).
While Erste will have to pay back the capital at face value, ING's capital injection will have to be repaid at 150 percent.
Nowotny declined to specifically comment on the terms of Erste's deal, but it is currently the only recapitalisation measure planned for an Austrian bank.
Nowotny said there were also discussions about opening up the recapitalisation to private investors by inviting shareholders to subscribe to the capital issue as well.
"If the issue is subscribed (to) by the private sector as well you could see that as a sign that the measure is according to market conditions," he said.
Nowotny said, however, that he believed it was wrong to ban banks from making dividend payments if they take government money, as this would further restrict their ability to raise capital from private investors. (Reporting by Boris Groendahl; Editing by Greg Mahlich and Simon Jessop)
