Following May 2021’s successful completion of the region’s most complex integration process, OTP Banka Srbija succeeded in maintaining and fortifying its position as the largest corporate and retail lender over the course of 2021 and 2022, but also as the leader of the factoring market and the leasing and e-commerce services sectors. This was also recognised by world-renowned business and finance magazine Euromoney, which proclaimed ‘OTP banka’ the Best Bank in Serbia at this year’s award ceremony for the traditional Euromoney Award for Excellence
The Euromoney Award for Excellence has been awarded for the last three decades and is among the most noteworthy and prestigious financial sector awards presented to financial institutions that provide their clients with the highest level of service, innovation and expertise. This achievement comes as a result of the successful conducting of the bank integration process, the achieving of excellent business results, coupled with growing profitability, operational efficiency and healthy loan portfolio growth, which distinguished OTP Banka Srbija as a leader of our country’s banking market. As part of the decision-making process, Euromoney reviewed financial and business indicators, market position, offer quality and innovativeness, degree of innovation and digitalisation, user experience, corporate social responsibility policies and overall business strategy.
PROFITABILITY UP BY RECORD-BREAKING 95%
OTP banka generated pre-tax profits totalling 66 million euros in the first six months of this year, with a return on capital exceeding 16%. The bank’s year-on-year profitability was up by 95%, i.e., 32 million euros. Its net assets amounted to €5.96 billion in June of this year, representing an increase of as much as €628.8 million, or 11.8%, compared to the first half of 2021.
When it comes to lending activities, OTP banka recorded a total of almost 4.7 billion euros in the first six months of this year, representing an increase of 16.2%, or €660.2 million, against the same period of the previous year. This ensured that the bank retained top spot on the Serbian market, with a 17.6% market share. The value of housing loans exceeded a billion euros in the first half of the year, representing a 22% market share. A major leap was also recorded in the area of cash loans, with growth of 7.9% leading to a total of €1.1 billion, which represents a market share of 20.2%.
Significant growth was also achieved in the corporate lending segment, where €2.5 billion represented growth of 21.9% in comparison to the same period of the previous year. OTP banka thereby remains the number one corporate lender on the Serbian market, with a 16.8% market share.
Also operating within the framework of OTP Group in Serbia are OTP Leasing Srbija, leader of the country’s leasing market, and OTP Osiguranje, which provides life insurance services via OTP banka.
LEADER OF SERBIA’S GREEN TRANSITION
OTP banka bases its business strategy on the principles of sustainable business, striking a balance between economic, social and environmental impacts and goals. OTP banka aligns its sustainability priorities with global challenges and trends, in accordance with the strategy and priorities of its parent OTP Group. Given that this bank has the ambition to become the market leader in green financing, while continuously transitioning towards achieving carbon neutrality itself, OTP banka this year adopted its Sustainable Business Strategy, i.e., ESG [Environmental, Social and Governance] Strategy, and positioned itself – as an already acknowledged market leader – as a leader of Serbia’s green transition and the applying of ESG principles of action.
The Euromoney Award for Excellence has been awarded for the last three decades and is among the most noteworthy and prestigious financial sector awards presented to financial institutions that provide their clients with the highest level of service, innovation and expertise
OTP Banka Srbija uses electricity generated exclusively from renewable sources (100% ZelEPS), while its Belgrade headquarters has its own solar panels installed on the roof. Several initiatives and projects have been launched over previous years that further the green transition process, as one of the key strategic directions, one of the standouts of which is the multiple award-winning Generator project, via which OTP banka has spent the past five years providing entrepreneurs from various fields with opportunities to present their creative and innovative solutions. The funding competition concept has changed in accordance with the changing needs of the market, current circumstances and social challenges. This year’s edition, dubbed Generator Zero, was directed towards sustainable development and environmental projects aimed at contributing to reducing the carbon footprint. The bank received two awards this year in recognition of its engagement and contribution to society. Under the scope of the “Best of Serbia” campaign, OTP was awarded the Benefactor Award, while the French-Serbian Chamber of Commerce awarded it the prestigious Grand Prix.
INNOVATIONS IN ACTION
In cooperation with Google and Mastercard, OTP banka has enabled its clients to make quick, easy and secure payments on their mobile devices via Google Pay. This service is available to OTP banka clients who are users of Mastercard payment cards and can be accessed on smart phones and watches that support NFC technology. It was back in 2019 that the bank became one of the first to introduce the possibility of using mobile devices with the Android operating system as payment cards, in the form of the mCard service, while users of iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad or Mac devices were provided with the possibility of utilising the Apple pay service in 2020. Moreover, a completely new and technologically improved m-bank application that was launched recently brings a high level of performance and security, advanced and new functionality, the standout element of which is a modern, intuitive and clear design that provides users with a unique level of user experience. The special value of the new m-bank application is the fact that it was designed on the basis of clients’ wishes, with their suggestions having been taken into account and implemented during the creative process.
EXCELLENCE AWARDS FOR HR PROCESSES AND PROGRAMMES
OTP banka builds its HR processes, innovative practises and employee relations in accordance with the highest standards – not only in the banking industry, but also in the arena with the best. At the foundations of its leadership position is a corporate culture that enables constant development of employees by creating changes and innovative solutions. This is confirmed by two important accolades received in 2022: the Employer Partner certificate, representing a prestigious HR recognition that serves as a guarantee of the excellence of HR processes within companies and confirms their continuous investment, modernisation and the improvement of the employee experience; and the Human Driven Reshape award, which was presented in recognition of the most innovative HR practises for the BFF programme. These results clearly show that the bank takes a strategic approach to its employees and recognises their crucial role in the development of the bank through the nurturing of a culture of dialogue and cooperation.