ZAGREB, 16 Feb 2022 - Financial stability risks remain increased compared to the period before the crisis due to uncertainties surrounding the end of the pandemic, rising inflation, residential real estate price hikes, and geopolitical risks, the Croatian National Bank (HNB) Council concluded on Wednesday.

The economy continued to grow in the last quarter of 2021, albeit at lesser intensity than previously in the year, with industrial production increasing, while the real retail turnover and construction stayed at Q3 levels, the HNB said in a press release.

In Q4 2021, employment continued to increase while the unemployment rate dropped, making their levels better than before the pandemic. Nominal pay growth also continued to accelerate, while inflation resulted in a decrease of the real pay average.

In December, the annual inflation rate increased to 5.5% from 4.8% in November. Higher food prices contributed the most to that. Together with energy prices, they are increasingly influencing inflation.

The continuation of expansionary monetary policy continues to stimulate the fall of banks' interest rates. Keeping interest rates on the money market at zero is accompanied by a mild increase in sovereign bond yields.

At the end of last year, bank lending increased 3.9% year on year, just as it did at the end of 2020. Household lending went up from 2.1% in December 2020 to 4.5% last December, primarily as a result of a strong increase in housing loans. Corporate lending decreased from 5.6% to 2.3%.

Although a strong economic recovery enabled a gradual revocation of government aid to businesses, new waves of the pandemic continue to cause problems in global supply chains, stimulating price growth.

Hence, there is a prominent risk of long-term inflationary pressures and higher inflation than currently forecast, which could prompt a faster and stronger tightening of the monetary policies of the largest monetary markets' central banks.

Increased volatility on financial markets at the start of this year is reflected in uncertainty about inflation trends, the evolution of monetary policies and expected interest rate growth.

Residential real estate prices increasingly further from fundamentals

Last year saw a strong increase in housing loans in Croatia as well as residential real estate prices, which went up to 9% in Q3. Those prices are moving further and further from long-term trends and macroeconomic fundamentals, increasing the risk of their fall in case of economic disruptions.

Increased household borrowing is accompanied by relatively mild borrowing standards which again this year, will be supported by government subsidies. These may, at the start of the repayment period, pose a smaller burden on borrowers but when the subsidies expire, they increase repayment costs as well as vulnerability to possible shocks.

In response to the continued accumulation of cyclical systemic risks, notably the rise in residential real estate prices and housing lending, the HNB has announced increasing the countercyclical capital buffer rate for Croatia from 0% to 0.5% as of 31 March 2023.

The aim is to set aside additional capital in time in order to boost the resilience of credit institutions to possible losses due to cyclical risks, the press release said.

For more, check out our business section.

February the 11th, 2022 - The new Zagrebacka banka instant payment offer is likely to delight the popular bank's clients, making life much easier when sending money quickly and easily in amounts up to 100,000 kuna.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the brand new Zagrebacka banka instant payment option has been introduced as a new service intended for all its private and business users who have transaction accounts. They can execute their payments with this new option up to a maximum of 100,000 kuna. Zagrebacka banka instant payment is available here in Croatia and are possible in kuna despite the country's impending Eurozone accession, and can also be carried out every day, including weekends, bank holidays and public holidays.

Clients of Zagrebacka banka will thus be able to execute their transactions in almost real time, meaning in just a few seconds. Zagrebacka banka instant payment transactions are made by online banking via the mobile application (m-zaba) and on the Internet (e-zaba), through existing forms of Zagrebacka banka accounts by checking the ''Instant payment/placanje'' option. Filling out Instant Payment orders is exactly the same as it is with standard orders, and the payer can immediately see if their payment has been successfully completed.

Let's say that a client needs to pay some money on Friday night to a person who has a transaction account with another bank. Until now, it would be necessary to wait until Monday to process such a payment. But with the introduction of this service, the money will be made available in the recipient's account immediately.

Payments are made through NKSInst, a national clearing system for instant payments developed by the Financial Agency (Fina) and approved by the Croatian National Bank.

Instant payments are possible between Zagrebacka banka and other banks included in the NKSInst system. The same applies to instant payments from other banks in the NKSInst system that are made to transaction accounts of Zagrebacka banka clients. Clients will be informed when preparing an order and choosing an instant option if the recipient's bank is not included in the NKSInst system, and they can check the list of all involved banks on Fina's website.

For more on Croatian banks, loans and services, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

November the 27th, 2021 - Croatian banks will have a hefty sum on their hands as the country's Eurozone entry approaches. The costs of the transition alone are eye-watering.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Jadranka Dozan writes, based on the Action Plan for the Adjustment of the Financial System to the Introduction of the Euro as the Official Currency, about a month ago the Croatian National Bank instructed commercial Croatian banks to prepare a simulation of the costs of adjusting to the euro.

Estimates of the expected effects on revenues and expenditures directly related to the adjustment process, from the beginning of this year to 12 months after the date of the introduction of the euro, must be submitted to the CNB by the end of this year.

According to the CNB's instructions, the simulation includes all points of the Action Plan related to the implementation of the conversion, the double reporting of prices, the notification of users and adjustments following the introduction of the euro.

Among other things, it should include all foreseeable costs of pre-supply, indirect pre-supply and the cost of additional processing and the transportation of cash and additional cash insurance in branches of Croatian banks, as well as all foreseeable costs related to changes in the operation of payment systems. In addition, Croatian banks are expected to calculate related to regulatory reporting requirements, but also with all the expected savings associated with the conversion.

On their behalf, the Croatian Association of Banks provided a rough estimate. "For the needs of the technical process of adjusting the banking system, one-time costs are estimated at between 80 and 100 million euros. In addition to the above, the turnover on the foreign exchange market of kuna/euro will stand at about one billion kuna per year,'' stated the director of HUB, Zdenko Adrovic. One-time costs related to the introduction of the euro, he says, are primarily related to the adjustment of information systems and ATM networks.

However, HUB emphasised that both Croatian banks and their clients will find it easier to manage any currency risk in the long run, which means that risks will generally be reduced, and the collectibility of placements will be higher on average than it would be if Croatia were to keep the kuna.

HUB also emphasised that the introduction of the euro is extremely important for increasing investment, financing conditions and long-term growth of the Croatian economy. They add that the technical introduction of the euro is a very complex process that requires intensive engagement and cooperation of all bank employees.

"Croatian banks will play an important role in the whole process, given that they'll adjust the software of their POS devices and digital services and the entire ATM network so that people have the opportunity to use all banking services and withdraw their cash from the moment the euro is introduced. In addition, banks will convert deposits and loans and inform their clients in a timely and detailed manner about all they need to know,'' they concluded.

In any case, despite the instructions of the CNB to Croatian banks, this year was largely marked by the preoccupation with the euro project and all of the related preparatory activities. Although the Government continues to insist on the "fast track" move, so the target date for entry into the Eurozone is still the 1st of January 2023 (the earliest possible date according to the rules related to ERM II), the exact date will be known only next year.

Whether it is the beginning, middle or end of the year, operational activities to replace the kuna require very careful coordination. This is especially true for IT system customisations, which also account for a large share of the aforementioned costs. Regarding technical and technological adjustments to the transition to the common European currency, it is enough to mention, for example, that the number of devices on which payment cards are accepted in Croatia exceeds 113 thousand.

Most of them, slightly less than 108 thousand, refer to EFTPOS devices for payments at points of sale, and despite the long-term trend of reducing the ATM network, there were almost 4900 ATMs at the beginning of this year. Like most other banks, Erste Bank says they're already working intensively on the euro adjustment process to prepare in time for the introduction of the new currency. In terms of costs, most of it relates to the IT segment.

For more, follow our politics section.

ZAGREB, 27 Oct 2021 - In the first nine months of 2021, Zagrebačka Banka generated HRK 1.07 billion in profit after taxes, up 22% on the year, according to an unconsolidated financial report released on Wednesday.

Operating revenue was HRK 2.8 billion, down 1.8% on the year, while operating costs were HRK 1.2 billion, up by HRK 9 million on the year. The cost-revenue ratio was 42.3%.

The bank's assets totaled HRK 131.3 billion, up 5.5% on the year, while net lending totalled HRK 68.6 billion, up by HRK 1.1 billion as a result of higher exposure to the government.

Client deposits were the primary source of financing and totalled HRK 106.9 billion, including a HRK 8.7 billion increase resulting mainly from household and corporate deposits.

Deposits by credit institutions were HRK 2.6 billion, down by HRK 3.1 billion.

According to a consolidated financial report for the first nine months of 2021, the Zagrebačka Banka Group generated HRK 1.28 billion in profit after taxes, up 16.2% on the year, the main contributors being Zagrebačka Banka, UniCredit Bank Mostar and UniCredit Leasing Croatia.

The group's operating revenue was HRK 3.6 billion, down 3.9% on the year, while operating costs were HRK 1.7 billion, down by HRK 4 million.

(€1 = HRK 7.5)

ZAGREB, 2 Sept 2021 - Croatian National Bank (HNB) governor Boris Vujčić has said that the HNB's legal proposal is aimed at regulating tacit overdrafts the same way authorized overdrafts are regulated, which would result in greater consumer protection but also cause a drop in bank revenue of more than HRK 100 million annually.

Addressing a news conference on Thursday, Vujčić recalled the HNB's proposal for amendment of the Consumer Credit Act in the segment concerning authorized and tacit overdrafts. The HNB will agree to those changes with the government and it will also meet with bank representatives, Vujčić said, noting that the final form of the bill had still not been defined.

Vujčić said that the HNB completed a market analysis in Q1 2021 and that its findings, together with legal proposals, were presented to the Finance Ministry in April.

The analysis of the overdraft market was launched in 2020, showing that a large portion of overdrafts had changed from authorized to tacit overdrafts.

Vujčić stressed that the Consumer Credit Act, adopted much earlier, was designed to make tacit overdrafts an exception, but that when it was established that most overdrafts had turned into tacit overdrafts, a decision was made to impose the same regulation mechanism for those overdrafts as for authorized overdrafts.

In the case of authorized overdrafts, the effective interest rate is capped and banks have the obligation, when opting to cancel that service, to offer their client the possibility of repaying their debt in 12 installments.

"This legal proposal is an attempt to set a maximum effective interest rate (on tacit overdrafts) and make banks offer repayment in installments if their clients get into problems. Banks can do that now but they are not obliged to. In the future, they will have to do just that," said Vujčić.

He noted that the legal proposal was not about abolishing tacit overdrafts.

New agreements on tacit overdrafts will thus have to be limited to 90 days and HRK 1,500, and Vujčić said that the adoption of the new law could result in a drop in bank revenue of HRK 100 million annually, noting that that would depend on the final version of the bill, however, the estimate was not expected to change significantly.

Depending on the type of loan, wage, and overdraft amount, consumers would be able to save between HRK 150 and 450 a year.

Interest rates should reflect product-related risks 

Vujčić also said that of some 1,000 consumer complaints the HNB received in 2020, seven referred to tacit overdrafts, and when asked if the HNB could have reacted sooner, he said that this was not a problem previously as the effective interest rate on tacit overdrafts was not high.

The average effective interest rate for overdrafts grew in 2020 because banks raised their fees, not interest rates. "Before that, we did not have any reason to intervene, and now we do," he said.

Vujčić said that the matter was a very complex and sensitive one and that putting a cap on the interest rate was not, as believed by some, necessarily the best solution because it could exclude a large number of citizens from the market.

He noted that interest rates should reflect product-related risks and that in principle tacit overdrafts indeed entailed the most risk as there was no collateral and the client's creditworthiness was not checked, hence the high-interest rate.

He added that interest rates on tacit overdrafts in Croatia were lower on average than in EU countries that had not introduced the euro and higher than in those that were part of the euro area, but that that was not the case with other financial products.

Speaking of inflation, Vujčić said that there was no risk of very high inflation rates.

"However, in the euro area the inflation rate is slightly higher than forecast but we are still between 2% and 3%, which should not be worrying," he said.

For more on politics, follow TCN's dedicated page.

July the 2nd, 2021 - The first issuing of some Croatian bank bonds on the international capital market has proven successful, seeing the popular Erste Bank take another brave step forward at both the national and the EU level.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, these Croatian bank bonds were issued with an annual interest rate of 0.75 percent and a yield to maturity of 0.835 percent. With the realisation of this transaction, Erste Bank made an additional step forward and added its first international euro bond to its existing securities in circulation on the Croatian capital market. This made it the first bank in all of Croatia to successfully issue its own bonds on the international capital market.

The primary purpose of this Croatan bank bonds issue is to meet the regulatory requirement with which the bank must comply by the 1st of January 2024, and the first binding requirement in the transitional period must be met by the 1st of January 2022. This regards the so-called MREL requirement (Minimum regulatory capital requirement and eligible liabilities).

MREL is part of the European Union (EU) regulatory framework aimed at strengthening the financial system, with a focus on credit institutions, in order to increase resilience to shocks, unforeseen stress scenarios and prevent systemic risk. The funds raised by this Croatian bank bonds issue will be used for general financing purposes and to encourage green and sustainable investments, and will also contribute to the further diversification of funding sources.

The issue was intended for institutional investors in the international market, and in the final allocation the largest share was played by international financial institutions with a share of 39 percent, followed by investment funds with 32 percent, banks with 15 percent and pension funds and insurers with a 14 percent share. Over 70 institutional investors participated in the issue, with a very pronounced European geographical diversification (the UK and Ireland with 41 percent, Germany and Austria with 27 percent, CEE countries with 11 percent, France with 6 percent, and Switzerland, the Benelux countries and others with smaller percentages of shares).

The joint agents of the issue were BofA Securities Europe SA, Erste Group Bank AG, Landesbank Baden-Württemberg and Societe Generale.

"Erste Bank is the most active issuer of bonds among financial institutions in the Republic of Croatia, with this Croatian bank bonds issue being the sixth in a row, and also the first on the international capital market.

After we successfully realised the edition of the so-called senior preffered bonds in the amount of 45 million euros, which was the first such issue on the domestic capital market within the so-called MREL regulatory requirement, and with the successful issuance of an international euro bond, we're continuing on our planned path. In accordance with our financing strategy, we've further diversified the sources of funds by issuing bonds, and we'll use these collected funds for our core business, continuing to build a sustainable and successful business path for Erste Bank on the Croatian market,'' said Kresimir Baric, the CFO of Erste Bank.

For more, follow our business section.

March the 7th, 2021 - The ongoing coronavirus crisis is difficult to manage even for banks as Croatian companies require moratoriums on loans and credit taken out. As the tourist season approaches, Zdenko Adrovic, the director of the Croatian Banking Association, says that banks are quietly hoping that such extensions will become a thing of the past.

As Novac/Marina Klepo writes, with the beginning of the tourist season, when Croatian companies working in the field of tourism and transport start generating income, the Croatian Banking Association believes that their creditworthiness will increase and that there will be no additional need for moratoriums.

Referring to the latest guidelines of the EBA, the EU banking regulatory body, on extending the moratorium to nine months, Zdenko Adrovic, the director of the Croatian Banking Association, stated that an expiration to that will take place on March the 31st this year, which means that the moratorium may last until the end of 2021.

¨I believe that this should be long enough, provided that everything starts to return to normal in the next few months,¨ said Zdenko Adrovic during a presentation. However, he added that he will have a much better picture of the state of Croatian companies and what happened in regard to the economy at the end of June. Whether the moratorium will be extended, obviously, will depend on further instructions from the EBA, but what is quite likely is that the share of so-called bad loans/credit will continue to grow, as well as banks' provisions for value adjustments.

The importance of support

The year of the coronavirus crisis in regard to the banking system, according to Zdenko Adrovic of the Croatian Banking Association, will be remembered for three characteristic trends: the growth of deposits, stable interest rates and the growth of loans. Back in January this year, household deposits were seven percent higher than they were in the same month last year, and compared to the end of 2019, they increased by as much as 15.6 billion kuna.

Profit and capitalisation

As expected, the public health crisis led to a deterioration in overall bank performance, with their profits more than halved last year (down 53.3 percent). Their net interest income decreased by 5.7 percent, and income from fees and commissions down by 10.5 percent. Banks responded to the decline in income with better cost management, but "costs are more rigid than income and cannot be reduced at the same pace." Despite this, Croatian banks remain "among the best capitalised banks in the world". The total capital ratio of 24.9 percent and the entry into the banking union in parallel with the entry into ERM II "guarantees stability, transition through the crisis and the readiness of banks to respond to the increased demand expected by offering new loans in the period ahead as we exit this crisis.¨

February 23, 2021 - After being told it would take weeks by another bank, opening a Croatian business bank account in 46 minutes as a foreigner IS possible.

I ALMOST had the perfect day with Croatian bureaucracy last week. 

The mission was daunting. First stop, Raiffeisen Bank in Varazdin to sign a leasing contract for my new (not so new) car. Then to the notary to notarise the contract, which I then had to return. Then off to the heroes at FINA to collect the documentation for my new jdoo company. then on to my bank PBZ - where I have had a private and a Croatian business bank account for 18 years. My simple mission was to open a bank account for the new company, return a document to my FINA heroes, then pick up some chicken from the market, and there would be curry for lunch. You can see how I did in 'Beer to Go' to Celebrate a Morning with Croatian Bureaucracy.

As a spoiler alert, I didn't manage to open the bank account. I was shocked to be told that as a foreigner (they did not ask my nationality), opening a Croatian business bank account in Varazdin was not possible. I would have to travel to Zagreb for this.  Crazy, I thought to myself, as I headed to the market, the chicken curry now guaranteed. But not too inconvenient, as I would be in Zagreb two days later. 

My wife called ahead to make sure it was possible and to make an appointment. It was indeed possible to make an appointment, but the earliest available slot was on March 3, some two weeks ago. 

Let me get this right. Opening a Croatian business bank account as a foreigner (the PBZ rules are apparently different for locals) meant I would have to drive 160 km round trip and wait two weeks for the privilege?

In 2021?

My long-suffering accountant, Gordana, confirmed that this was indeed the case after she called the bank to check. A recent change of policy, apparently. 

This is nuts, I thought. So I posted on Facebook and LinkedIn, with a challenge to anyone working in the industry. Was opening a Croatian business bank account as a foreigner possible in one day? I even offered to write an article on TCN about the process, which I thought would be a good PR incentive. 

I was disheartened by the early feedback. Representatives of various Croatian banks were tagged by my social media followers, but none got in touch. And then someone said that I should try Raiffeisen Bank - you could even do most of the application online. 

Really?!?

We checked, my wife called, and it seemed to be true. Or I could do it in person, the very helpful Varazdin branch confirmed. I chose the latter. And I decided to time it. 

Arriving exactly at 15:00 my soon-to-be new best friend, Nenad, took my papers, passport and ID and inspected them. All was in order. This should not take long, he exclaimed in perfect English. 

A few questions, a few signatures, and all was done. Could I add my accountant to the account, give her online access and have all the bills sent to her?

Of course, replied Nenad. What is her name, perhaps she is already in our system? And there she was, young Gordana smiling out of Nenad's desktop. We got her on the phone and confirmed some details and all was set up. 

Absotulely painless. 

Timeline 46 minutes from start to finish with the opening process, including downloading the application and training on how it works. 

Today, I will get the number of the account and the online access codes, and we are ready to roll. 

Just 46 minutes in the bank rather than the anticipated hours of torture, leaving plenty of time for the finer things in llfe.

Nenad, I salute you, Sir. A lovely man, for a Liverpool fan. Masked up for the entire process, he did consent to a photo without a mask for this article. 

I don't know if Raiffeisen has an initiative for rewarding star employees, but my vote for a gold star and chocolate biscuit goes to this young man.

For more on the joys of Croatian bureaucracy, click here. 

January the 12th, 2021 - Excellent news for those with accounts with the Croatian OTP banka as interest rates are set to be frozen as of the beginning of next month.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, on Monday, the Croatian OTP banka announced that it would lower its interest rates on loans to Croatia’s residents who have accounts in euros and kuna linked to the National Reference Interest Rate (NRS1) from the beginning of February.

From February the 1st, OTP banka will lower interest rates on all loans to those with a variable interest rate, which is related to the movement of the national reference rate (NRS1), so the interest rate on loans with a currency clause in euros will be lower by 0.05 percent points while on loans in kuna will be lower by 0.06 percentage points, the statement said.

As was added, this interest rate reduction refers to all existing and newly approved loans that are related to the National Reference Rate (NRS1).

OTP banka notes that it will inform all its clients in a timely and written manner about the change in the interest rates and the new amount of annuities and the new repayment plan.

The national reference interest rate is the average cost of financing the banking sector and is calculated by the Croatian National Bank (CNB). NRS1 represents the costs of financing from the funds collected from deposits of natural persons, and NRS2 the costs of financing from the funds collected from deposits of natural and legal persons of the non-financial sector.

Back at the end of November, the CNB published the values ​​of the national reference rate (NRS) for the third quarter of 2020, which show the continuation of the downward trend that has been going on since way back at the beginning of 2013. Of the 24 NRS indices calculated by the CNB, in the third quarter of 2020 all these indices showed lower values ​​than they did in the previous quarter, although their decline was slightly smaller than in the previous quarter, with the exception of the Swiss currency index, which remained unchanged.

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January the 10th, 2021 - Croatian banks and banks throughout the wider region have taken some serious blows as a result of the ongoing pandemic, but just what determines the strength of those blows?

As Ana Blaskovic/Poslovni Dnevnik writes, Croatian banks and banks across the country’s region entered the coronavirus crisis in relatively good health as they were fairly adequately protected by capital and were engulfed in a trend of declining bad loans. However, the effects of the pandemic will continue to be profound, especially when it comes to the quality of bank portfolios, which will depend deeply on national measures put in place to try to mitigate the effects of the pandemic.

“The outlook for the quality of Croatian banks' assets in the coming period largely depends on a combination of economic recovery and state aid. Since the beginning of the pandemic, state measures to help businesses have played a key role in stabilising the quality of bank assets.

However, even an early cessation of state aid could lead to a sharp increase in contract default rates in the coming period,’’ they warned from Deloitte in the third edition of the Study on Mergers and Acquisitions in the Banking Sector in Central and Eastern Europe.

The body noted that lawmakers are encouraging the early detection of bad loans and securing provisions, and measures to mitigate the effects of the pandemic, such as a moratorium and selective relief for Croatian banks and others, could, at least to some extent, work to mask the real economic damage. Nevertheless, "huge future negative effects on the quality of bank portfolios and the profits of banks" are expected.

"The coming period will reveal the real extent of the damage caused by the material deterioration of certain clients, which is likely to further encourage consolidation in the banking market of Central and Eastern Europe," said Vedrana Jelusic Kasic, a partner in Deloitte's financial advisory department.

The real damage to Croatian banks in those throughout the region can be seen from the financial results for 2020 and “there is no doubt that coronavirus will leave a strong mark on the results of CEE banks over the next year as well”.

Among the key findings is that regional creditors entered the crisis with a strong capital position, averaging about 20 percent in 2019, up 0.2 points from a year earlier. The average profitability with a return on equity of 12.7 percent with a simultaneous return on assets of 1.5 percent was also stable.

"High levels of profitability due to further pressure on interest rates and provisions for credit placements will not be able to be maintained," the study said.

Nearly 60 percent of total assets are owned by the 15 largest regional groups. In terms of assets, the largest is still the Erste Group with 8.7 percent market share and a presence in 8 countries.

Erste is followed by the KBC Group (with a market share of 7.8%, presence in 4 countries) and the Italian UniCredit (with a market share of 6.5% and presence in 9 countries). The Hungarian OTP achieved the highest asset growth thanks to boasting an active M&A strategy.

The banking sector of Central and Eastern Europe entered a pandemic with only 7.2 percent of bad loans. Compared to 2018, this marks three-quarters of a percentage point less, which reflects many years of positive economic trends, portfolio cleansing and regulatory incentives.

"Overall, the shares of non-performing loans in the CEE at the end of 2019 were at their lowest levels ever, which put the regional banking sector in a relatively favourable position to face the economic challenges and consequences caused by the pandemic," said Deloitte.

As the good years have reflected on them, Croatian banks and those in the region cannot avoid the spillover effects of the ongoing pandemic, and the extent to which the sector will feel this will greatly depend on the range and scope of government measures.

Deloitte concludes that banks in the CEE region have recorded remarkable results in recent years thanks to a stable macro-environment that was interrupted by a pandemic in the first half of last year to the detriment of return on capital.

Resilience is crucial in times of economic shocks, and the banking sector in Central and Eastern Europe is still fragmented, with a significant number of smaller banks whose market share is virtually negligible.

"Small, less efficient and less resilient players may not be able to overcome the shock of capital and minimum acceptable profitability on their own, and we expect the consolidation trend to continue in the coming years and even accelerate due to the crisis caused by the pandemic," Deloitte said.

For the latest news from business in Croatia, follow the dedicated TCN section.