The most significant acquisition in OTP Group’s history is closed

OTP Bank has been committed to Slovenia via its subsidiary SKB banka, which has been part of the banking group since 2019. The integration process of Nova KBM and SKB banka, which begins now with strong support of OTP Group, will result in creating a leading financial institution providing innovative solutions and inspiring opportunities to its clients and employees. During the integration process both banks will continue to operate at the usual high quality of services without any changes in the product portfolio. Customers of Nova KBM do not need to do anything in connection with the ownership transfer.

As of today, OTP Bank officially owns Nova KBM Group, including Nova KBM d.d. and Aleja Finance d.o.o. The bank has purchased the group from funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, Inc. (80%) and EBRD (20%). At closing, Nova KBM’s 100% stake in Summit Leasing Slovenija d.o.o. has been divested from the Nova KBM Group and retained by the Apollo funds and EBRD.

The Nova KBM acquisition will further strengthen the position of OTP Group on the Slovenian banking market. With the transaction closing, the banking group represents a dominant position and capabilities with about 30% market share, and became market leader in terms of loans and deposits.

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“Nova KBM is one of the most innovative banks on the Slovenian market, and it has become a very valuable member of OTP Group. With this transaction and merger, we confirm not only our long-term and serious commitment to Slovenia but also demonstrate that OTP Group has a solid foundation, it is well capitalized, has an outstanding liquidity, and the management is committed to strengthening regional presence,” stated Sándor Csányi, Chairman and CEO of OTP Bank. He added that this event is an important milestone, not only in the development of the banking group in Slovenia but also for OTP Group generally.

“The purchase of Nova KBM is the most significant acquisition of the Group to date, and Slovenia is the fifth country where we became market leaders. We work to ensure that the future merger of SKB banka and Nova KBM will be highly beneficial for individual customers as well as small and medium-sized enterprises, but corporate clients and the employees of both banks will also profit from the optimal size of the new, merged bank. This not only implies the development of superior quality and excellent value for money banking products and services, as well as easier access to branches and ATMs, but also brings bigger digital and innovation capacities. Nova KBM will continue to serve its clients with cutting-edge services, a high level of professionalism and friendliness – now the first difference they will see when they visit the branches and online channels will be the color of the corporate logo, which gradually goes green in line with OTP Group’s brand,” Mr. Csányi added.

John Denhof, CEO of Nova KBM: “We are excited about the planned merger of Nova KBM and SKB banka, we believe the winners of the integration will be our clients and our employees.

With closing of this transaction, Nova KBM also completes its unprecedented transformational journey under the ownership of the Apollo funds and EBRD. On behalf of the Management Board, I wanted to thank them for all the support, focus and guidance over the last few years, which allowed Nova KBM to become one of the leading financial institutions in Slovenia. OTP’s rich experience in banking and mergers will mean a lot of contribution and support and we look forward to our progress toward becoming the very best bank in Slovenia. Together with SKB banka we are committed to ensure a smooth integration process and will make sure that all our clients will be timely notified about the key milestones related to the merger of both banks.”

Anita Stojčevska, CEO of SKB:

“In the period of being a member of OTP Group, our mother company has already proven its strategic role and development orientation. SKB banka was successfully integrated in the OTP Group and we will be more than happy to share our knowledge and experiences with our new colleagues. We also believe that past OTP and Nova KBM merger stories will help us all to successfully build the new future leading bank of Slovenia together. In the period of integration in SKB banka, we will continue to be strong and reliable financial partner, always focused on clients’ needs. As an employer we will continue to enable employees to develop their potential and encourage team spirit. We are committed to combine the best of each bank to become the story of success.”

Michele Raba, Apollo Partner, said: “Following six successful years of Nova KBM ownership by the Apollo funds and EBRD, we are all very proud of what we have achieved together with Nova KBM’s team, and thank all of Nova KBM’s incredible management, employees and Supervisory Board for their hard work and support. Under our ownership, Nova KBM underwent an amazing transformational journey and met or exceeded all its strategic targets, successfully merging and integrating four banks including Abanka. Nova KBM has profoundly strengthened its corporate culture, simplified products and improved client services, and ultimately attracted the interest of a high-quality strategic buyer.

We wish Nova KBM and OTP Group best of luck in this new, exciting journey.”

The integration process of the two banks is planned to be completed in about 1.5 years. Until the end of the integration process, the two banks will operate as separate entities and under separate brands. The merged bank will offer great opportunities for the group’s collective clients and employees. A notable benefit of the future merger of Nova KBM and SKB banka is that clients will be able to use a wide network of about 450 ATMs of both banks in Slovenia without fees for debit card cash withdrawals soon after closing.

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