HPB to take over Sberbank in Croatia

Croatia’s only remaining state-owned bank Hrvatska poštanska banka is taking over Sberbank Croatia. 

Russian bank Sberbank’s European business is being carved up after sanctions imposed following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused a run on the bank in European countries, including Croatia.

Austria-based Sberbank Europe AG will be liquidated while all shares in its Croatian and Slovenian subsidiaries will be transferred to other banks, HPB in Croatia and NLB in Slovenia.

"This is about protecting Sberbank customers and all bank customers but also the whole financial system," said Croatia’s Finance Minister Zdravko Marić.

This is good news for some 70 thousand Sberbank customers in Croatia. All of the bank's branches resumed normal operations as of noon on Wednesday. Marko Badurina, the CEO of HPB, says customers have responded positively to the news.

"The initial feedback from the field and from our call center tells us that clients have reacted well to the news and have breathed a sigh of relief. The word is that clients who spoke to our representatives at their banks are changing their mind about pulling their deposits and will keep their money with our bank," Badurina said.

Over the next year, Sberbank Croatia will operate under the name Nova hrvatska banka as part of the HPB Group. The decision was made by the Single Resolution Board, the EU agency which handles failing European lenders, and the Croatian National Bank.