Karanovic & Nikolic Advises on OTP’s Acquisition of Vojvodanska Banka
August, 2017 - Serbia
Karanovic & Nikolic, in cooperation with the global law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, advised OTP Bank – one of the leading banks in Central and Eastern Europe, on the acquisition of Vojvodanska Banka. The National Bank of Greece signed an agreement to sell its Vojvodanska Banka unit in Serbia and NGB Leasing, as well as its corporate loan portfolio in Serbia to Hungary's OTP Bank, for 125 million euros.
The services performed by the Karanovic & Nikolic team - led by Darko Jovanovic, Ivan Nonkovic and Mina Sreckovic, included the due diligence of Vojvodanska Banka and its affiliates, advising on the transaction documents from the local law perspective and the obtaining of regulatory approvals.
The acquisition is expected to be closed by the end of 2017. Once the process is completed, the Hungarian bank will have a 5.7% market share in Serbia – making it the seventh biggest bank in the country.
With a market share of 4.2%, Vojvodanska Bank is the ninth biggest bank in Serbia with a substantial base of retail clients. In 2016, the bank's total assets stood at 1.17 million euros, with the total value of approved loans of 810 million EUR. In 2015 and 2016 the bank had a 1.9% and 2.3% return on equity respectively. It currently has more than 1400 employees, 105 branches and 138 ATMs.
