Komercijalna banka – new owner of Politika’s building

Komercijalna banka confirmed that it had become owner of business building of Politika in Makedonska Street in Belgrade, in which the administration and editorial offices of that newspaper company are settled. Politika AD settled its debts of €37.1m to Komercijalna Banka by transferring ownership over that office space, said the member of the Administration of that bank Goran Milićević. By the agreement on settling of debts, according to Milićević, two other smaller Politika’s buildings, the one in 35 Makedonska Street and the other in 24 Despota Stefana Boulevard, are no more mortgaged by Komercijalna banka.
The agreement between the two sides was made official by signing of the Protocol on strategic partnership at the end of December 2005. According to that document, Politika rented that office space on period of 99 years. The amount of rent, according to Milićević, will be determined by an independent agency. He said that the aim of such agreement was to enable Politika, which was burdened by interest rates and payments, regular doing of business.
Asked whether the market value of that business facility was bigger than Politika’s debt to the bank, Milićević said that the estimate of the value was real and he added that the adaptation of that building required the same amount of money. The agreement, as he said, was achieved with the active participation of the State, with just arrangement for both sides, to which the administration of the bank and Politika reacted positively. Majority owner of both Komercijalna banka and Politika AD is the the State of Serbia.