A foreign exchange would be a better owner of the Zagreb Stock Exchange than the state

The Slovenian financial public is cautiously observing the possibility that the Croatian state, through Fina, could become the owner of the Zagreb Stock Exchange and thus indirectly control the Slovenian capital market. Moreover, they believe that a much better solution would be for a larger foreign exchange to emerge in the competition for majority ownership.

The local financial public is keenly following what is happening after Fina’s announcement in early August that it would announce an offer to acquire a majority stake (currently holding 10 percent) in the Zagreb Stock Exchange. Namely, our exchange owns 100 percent of the shares of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange, which it purchased from the Vienna Stock Exchange in 2015.

Igor Štemberger, CEO of the investment company Ilirika, which was present in the Croatian brokerage scene 15 years ago, believes that more could have been done in the last ten years to develop the Slovenian market, although, as he says, not all responsibility lies with the Zagreb Stock Exchange as the owner.

– Only this year has something significant started to happen in the Slovenian market – says Štemberger. Let us recall, the Slovenian state has also embarked on issuing government bonds, and in March 2026, the implementation of personal investment accounts will begin, which will significantly facilitate the calculation of capital gains tax and thus, Slovenian financiers believe, indirectly stimulate trading in securities.

What is good for Croatia is not good for Slovenia

Regarding Fina’s offer for shares of the Zagreb Stock Exchange, Štemberger reminds that in Europe and the developed world, it is not customary for the state to own an exchange. – However, I believe that the Croatian government thinks more wisely and strategically about what is good for Croatia, unlike Slovenia, which is still divided along lines from World War II. However, what is good for Croatia is sometimes not good for Slovenia. I am convinced that a larger exchange would be a much better owner of the entire group of the Zagreb Stock Exchange – emphasizes this veteran of the Slovenian, but also regional capital market.

Will such a bidder appear, at this moment it is unclear. However, the motivation for speculation that there are interested investors in Slovenia who could make a counteroffer and thus compete with Fina’s offer was given by the fact that in August, a custodial account registered at Nova Ljubljanska Banka appeared in the ownership structure of the Zagreb Stock Exchange. This account holds more than 46,000 shares, or two percent of the stake, making this investor the 16th largest shareholder of the ZSE. Igor Štemberger says he has no information on whether anyone is specifically interested in making a counteroffer.

Fina currently holds only the approval from the Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency (Hanfa) for the direct acquisition of a majority stake. According to unofficial information, a similar approval could soon come from Skopje, given that the ZSE also holds one-third of the shares in the Macedonian Stock Exchange. The longest wait will likely be for the approval from the Slovenian Securities Market Agency (ATVP). According to recent reports from the daily newspaper Delo, the ATVP does not see legal reasons to reject Fina’s request.