(FORTUNE Magazine) – U.S. banks see opportunities in Eastern Europe -- but don't expect a replay of their disastrous lending spree in the Third World. Says George Salem, a senior banking analyst at Prudential-Bache: ''They will go in a toe at a time . . . Make that a toenail.'' BankAmerica, Chase Manhattan, and Citicorp, among a few others, are already there, but their loans are minimal (see table). Manufacturers Hanover has a Bucharest branch, and Citi has an 80% stake in a Budapest subsidiary. U.S. banks have lent directly to East European governments. But they prefer to act as middlemen between Western and Eastern dealmakers who often find themselves confronted by nonconvertible currencies. What's next? Probably the financing of specific projects, such as retooling factories, if their U.S. clients decide to make major investments in Eastern Europe.

BOX: U.S. BANK LOANS IN EASTERN EUROPE (in millions, as of June 1989) Minimal lending, minimal risk

Yugoslavia $1,631 Poland $282 East Germany $274 Hungary $262 Bulgaria $109 Czechoslovakia $49 Rumania $4