Illustrative stock photo (source: Sme)
The ownership shift at Sberbank Slovensko is based on a purchase contract signed with Sberbank Europe AG back in December 2015 which was approved in mid March by the Slovak Anti-trust Office, the Pravda daily wrote.
The transaction was also subject to approval by the European Central Bank (ECB), which was eventually provided last week, according to Penta Investments PR specialist Peter Tóth. “The acquisition of Sberbank Slovensko is in line with our long-term strategy of boosting our position on the Slovak banking market,” Penta Investments partner Iain Child told the TASR newswire.
Penta has been active on the banking market since 2007 when it became the sole shareholder in Privatbanka, focused on private banking. In 2011 it became the majority owner of Prima banka (at the time called Dexia banka), which is oriented mainly towards retail customers and funding municipalities.
Penta financial group also has a 45-percent share in Petit Press, the co-owner of The Slovak Spectator.
