Zagreb, 23 November 2016 – An Agreement on the Purchase and Sale of Business Shares between Luxembourg-based SKB Capital S.A. and Erste Card Club d.o.o. (“ECC”), with registered office in Zagreb, was signed in Belgrade. By virtue of this Agreement, ECC acquires 100% ownership over the companies Diners Club International Belgrade d.o.o. in Belgrade and Diners Club International Mak d.o.o.e.l. in Skopje, and thus indirectly over the companies Diners Club International Montenegro d.o.o. in Podgorica and DC Travel in Belgrade. Diners Club International, as the issuer of the franchise, supports the transaction and approves the transfer of the licence to ECC, as well as the future development of the Diners Club brand and business in those markets.

Pursuant to the Agreement, ECC takes over exclusively the right to issue and accept Diners Club cards, i.e. the responsibility for further development of the Diners Club brand and future operations in these markets, in the territory of the Republic of Serbia, the Republic of Macedonia and in Montenegro. The completion of the transaction and the final transfer of the business shares are expected to occur in the first quarter of 2017, after the fulfilment of the formal and legal requirements stipulated by the Agreement itself, as well as obtaining the approvals of all relevant regulatory bodies.

“As the biggest issuer in the region, ECC will bring new solutions from the Diners Club assortment of products to the markets of Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia, and thus enrich the offering of the franchises in these three countries. The advantages of merging franchises on the regional level, as well as the great potential for expanding business opportunities and successes, will affect both all participants in the franchise operations and our partners. The flawless service to which clients from Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia have been accustomed in the course of the decades of Diners Club’s operations in these countries will remain a priority in the upcoming period when it comes to products, services and advantages for payment with Diners Club cards,” pointed out Obrad Sikimic, who will serve as President of the Supervisory Board at DCI Belgrade for the next five years. Sikimic has been at the head of Diners Club in the territory of Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia for more than 25 years, working actively on positioning the Diners Club brand in these countries, i.e. on developing the payment services offerings.

“This step is a logical continuation of our business strategy, the goal of which is to strengthen regional presence in the market of southeast Europe. Taking into consideration the results of former franchise operations in these markets, we believe that we can ensure top service quality to the clients and realise successful business results in the long run”, Marija Radonic, Deputy President of the Management Board of ECC in charge of regional operations, added on this occasion.

Erste Card Club d.o.o. is a credit card company with the longest business tradition on the Croatian market, with over 550,000 issued credit cards in Croatia, Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is owned by Erste&Steiermärkische Bank d.d. from Croatia and is a part of one of the biggest banking groups in Central and Eastern Europe, Erste Group, and its partner in this region, Steiermärkische Sparkasse from Graz. Apart from the Diners Club franchise in Croatia, which is one of the ten largest and most successful such franchises in the world, ECC also owns the Diners Club franchise in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia, and it is present in the markets of Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania in the segment of card acceptance.