In brief
The Belgrade Commercial Court has opened bankruptcy proceedings against Serbia’s Alta Banka, naming the Deposit Insurance Agency as administrator. Deposits up to EUR 50 000 will be paid via Banka Postanska Stedionica within seven working days, while the bank’s owner and two employees face arrest on embezzlement charges. Banking experts dispute the scale of the alleged theft, noting banks rarely keep such large sums in cash vaults.
The Belgrade Commercial Court opened bankruptcy proceedings against Serbia’s Alta Banka on Tuesday, naming the Deposit Insurance Agency (DIA) as the bank’s administrator, BTA reported.
The DIA will manage the insolvency process and is preparing a schedule for the payout of insured deposits up to EUR 50,000 through Banka Postanska Stedionica. It will publish the exact payment dates and the list of participating branches on its website by Friday.
"The Deposit Insurance Agency is obliged to begin paying out insured deposits within the next seven working days. Depositors will be able to withdraw their insured funds within a period of three years," the DIA said in a statement.
The move follows the Serbian National Bank’s revocation of Alta Banka’s operating licence on 31 October, and the arrest of the bank’s owner, Davor Macura, and two employees on suspicion of abuse of office.
Prosecutors and police accuse Davor Macura of stealing RSD 45 billion (more than EUR 380 million) from the bank’s vault, while the two arrested employees are suspected of assisting him.
Banking experts quoted by Serbian media counter that an owner cannot realistically have access to such a large sum and that banks typically do not keep enormous amounts in cash vaults.
Despite the controversy, the DIA confirmed it has sufficient resources to pay out all insured deposits held at Alta Banka.
