Zagreb, 3 May 2018 - Erste bank has officially opened its first branch office in Makarska, 7 Stjepan Radić street. The newly-opened branch office has been designed according to the new service model concept, which places emphasis on the relationship with the clients, their satisfaction in doing business with the bank, as well as simple and transparent products and services. In addition to a counselling approach towards the client, the new model involves changing the appearance of branch offices. The Makarska branch is the first such branch in Split-Dalmatia county and the second one in Croatia. In the long run, the transformation of the sales network will encompass all 132 Erste bank branches in Croatia and, alongside Croatia, all seven countries from the international Erste group, with over 2,500 branches involved in the project. The aim of the project is to provide personalised services and a better user experience for the clients.

The branch is divided into several zones, including a welcome zone, where the client is greeted and directed towards one of the zones where, depending on the reason for their visit, special attention is given to each client. There is also a self-service zone furnished with state-of-the-art technology which will divert some of transactions away from the tellers. Technology plays an important role in this new concept, carefully tailored to provide workplace flexibility for the employees and to enable them to connect to the bank's partners using video-chat.

„We are pleased that our first branch in Makarska is also the first transformed branch in the entire region. The transformation of the retail network is one of the more important guidelines of our retail banking business strategy. Specifically, as a company, we have chosen to always keep up with the times and offer financial services of the highest quality to our clients by always keeping them in focus. This commitment guides us through the unavoidable process of full business transformation, in which we are modifying work processes, adapting products and services, developing people and ultimately improving the appearance and functionality of the branch offices themselves" , said Christoph Schoefboeck, Chairman of the Management Board of Erste banka.

The branch office covers the area of 160 square metres on two levels, providing the clients with four transaction consultants, a retail financial consultant and an SME consultant. In addition, the clients have a 24/7 self-service zone at their disposal which includes two deposit and withdrawal ATM's for retail clients, as well as Erste box and Erste Start Cash for business clients that use those services.

To improve its accessibility to clients, Erste banka has been systematically expanding its business network, with 11 branch offices available in Split-Dalmatia county. Considering the importance of the ATM network, especially for tourism-related activities, the bank has also been increasing the number of ATM's and locations which enable clients to withdraw and deposit cash. 27 ATM's have been installed in Dalmatia alone in 2017, which includes Split-Dalmatia county which currently has 60 ATM’s, five of which were installed in Makarska and neighbouring towns over the course of the year.

To mark the opening of the new branch, a donation has been made to the Sunce Disabled Persons’ Association for purchase of much-needed didactic equipment and a cheque has been presented to the Makarska Tourist Association for the acquisition of a Steora smart bench. The donations amount to HRK 30,000 in total.