Halkbank says bid for Serbia’s lender fails

ISTANBUL - Reuters

Turkey’s state-run lender Halkbank said late on Dec. 2 its offer to buy a 76.76 percent stake in Serbian lender Cacanska Banka had failed.

Halkbank said in a statement to the Public Disclosure Platform(KAP) that it could not agree on the price with related authorities, without elaborating how much it had offered.

Around 29 pct of bank owned by Serbian gov’t Cacanska Banka is 28.48 percent owned by the Serbian government, while the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) holds 24.99 percent, according to Reuters data. The International Finance Corporation owns 19.99 percent, with the remaining 26.54 percent is owned by other shareholders. According to Reuters data, the Serbian bank has a market cap of $18.12 million. Cacanska Banka has been continuously operating since 1956, according to the website of the lender and it employs 390 people.