Brodnjak: Belgrade to Become Second Seat of NLB Group

NLB Group is building a center of competences for the development of joint platforms for banks in the region in Belgrade, and since they are the heart of the future business model of banks as technological companies, that means that Belgrade is becoming a second seat of the NLB Group, Blaz Brodnjak, CMO of NLB, which bought Komercijalna Banka in late 2020, says for Tanjug.

This, he says, creates good jobs not just for people from the world of finance, but also for IT enthusiasts.

When asked whether there will be layoffs at Komercijalna Banka due to the takeover, but also the digitization, Brodnjak says that, ten years ago, NLB Bank had 4,200 employees, and that, in the next few years, with predominantly mild layoffs, it will have 2,100, half the previous number.

He explains that this is a consequence of the upgrade of technologies and the clients’ behavior, as they are visiting banks’ premises increasingly less, thereby consequently lowering the number of banking jobs, whereas, on the other, hand, the need for IT staff with data managing skills is substantially increased.

– For Komercijalna Banka as well, there’s a plan of rationalization of the organization and the number of employees, within which, as a responsible employer, we will pay great attention to the relation to the employees. I can’t provide the exact number of the employees at the bank in five years, because we are still doing the analyses, but everything will be honest and transparent – emphasizes Tanjug’s interviewee.

He adds that NLB Komercijalna Banka will act as a magnet for quality jobs through said center of competences for the development of strategic platforms for the members of the group.

Brodnjak says that the ambition of the group he is leading is to become the leading banking institution in the Serbian market, which, he explains, is possible only if they offer solutions that are competitive in terms of price and experience.

– The future NLB Komercijalna Banka will be the distributor of universal financial services, in addition to traditional banking services and insurance, as well as property management. We will look to offer relevant solutions at the right time and in the right place for the economy, agriculture and citizens – he points out.

He believes that, in implementing those plans, there’s plenty of possibilities for partnership with the public sector.

– We are primarily interested in projects of improving energy efficiency and energy production from renewable sources. We also see a great need for the upgrade of the production infrastructure, highways and railways, well-connected with industrial zones with access to renewable energy sources.

NLB Banka a.d. Beograd

Nova Ljubljanska banka d.d. Ljubljana

NLB Komercijalna banka AD Beograd

NLB Group in Belgrade

Komercijalna banka

Blaž Brodnjak

savings in the conditions of coronavirus pandemic

GDP

center of competences for development of joint platforms for banks in the region

NLB in Belgrade

operations of NLB Bank

operations of Komercijalna Banka

GDP of Serbia