At Wednesday’s shareholder meeting, the Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SSH), the sole shareholder of the state-owned bank, expanded the board from seven to nine members. It also dismissed two members: chief supervisor Gorazd Podbevšek as well as Miha Košak.
SSH then went on to appoint five new supervisory board members: Anton Ribnikar, Anton Macuh, Janko Gedrih, Primož Karpe and Laszlo Urban. Uroš Ivanc, Sergeja Slapničar, Andreas Klingen and Tit Andrej Erker are staying on as members. Initially, SSH was going to dismiss Erker, but ultimately decided to let him stay on.
SSH chairman Marko Jazbec, who himself served on the supervisory board of the NLB bank for three years, said after the meeting that SSH did not want to completely shake up NLB’s supervisory board. The decision to expand the board was made at the request of the country’s bank regulator.
Jazbec also criticized former NLB CEO Janko Medja, who stepped down on Friday. Jazbec said that while Medja was a “responsible CEO”, some of Medja’s actions in the past raise doubts about his “integrity and honesty”.
Jazbec remains particularly critical of Medja’s decision to hire various consultants, his failure to reduce the bank’s exposure to Swiss franc mortgages, and the bank’s management of bad loans under Medja’s watch. Jazbec believes that the new supervisory board and the Court of Audit will take a closer look at the bank’s business practices.
Medja’s resignation a tactical move
Former NLB CEO Janko Medja avoided a no-confidence vote by resigning on Friday, as the Slovenian Sovereign Holding was going to propose his dismissal. According to TV Slovenia journalist Tea Šavor, his resignation was a tactical move, as it appears that Medja will work for NLB for another year.
Central bank critical of SSH
Central bank vice-governor Stanislava Zadravec Caprirolo said a few days ago that the Slovenian Sovereign Holding prevented NLB from following the necessary regulations regarding the appointment of new supervisors. She said that SSH did not send the bank a list of candidates for the new board, which constitutes a violation of the European Central Bank’s regulations.
SSH said that it remains in compliance with the law, stressing that its actions do not violate the European Central Bank’s regulations. SSH also maintains that the candidates had the right qualifications.
G. C., A. Č.; translated by D. V.
