KBC Groep NV has asked the European Commission to amend its strategic plan approved for receiving state aid. The new plan includes the replacement of the initial public offering of a minority stake in CSOB with the sale of its Polish banking and insurance units. „KBC and the Belgian Authorities formally applied to the European Commission for its approval to replace the planned IPOs of a minority stake of CSOB BanK and K&H Bank Zrt. and the sale and lease back of KBC's headquarter offices in Belgium by the divestment of KBC's Polish banking and insurance subsidiaries, Kredyt Bank S.A. and Towarzystwo Ubezpieczen I Reasekuracji Warta S.A. (and their subsidiaries) and the sale or unwind of selected ABS and CDO assets,“ said KBC in a statement released today. KBC believes that the amendments proposed in its application respect the legal consistency of the EC Decision of 18 November 2009 and help the group achieve its objectives. KBC's main objective is and remains to execute the plan within the agreed timeframe and to repay the Belgian authorities in a timely manner. The amendments proposed in the application to the European Commission are expected to release the same amount of capital as the originally intended measures.