Societe Generale rumoured as preferred buyer of Ohridska Bank.

Societe Generale rumoured as preferred buyer of Ohridska Bank. The management of Ohridska Bank has decided to sell a 52% stake to France ’s Societe Generale, Vecer daily reports on the back of unofficial information. The share transfer is expected to place by the end of this year. Vecer adds that that it has not received a confirmation of the information from the local lender because its directors were absent. Ohridska Bank’s management has negotiated with two other suitors as well: Slovenia ’s Nova Ljubljanska Banka as well as a third foreign bank. Ohridska Bank reported pre-tax profit of MKD 164.3mn (EUR 2.7mn) for Jan-Sep, up 45% against the same period last year. The total assets of Ohridska Bank have increased by 12.6% to MKD 7bn (EUR 115.1mn) as of end-2005. The bank’s equity stood at MKD 874.2mn as of that date. The lender’s net profit has been MKD 106.1mn last year, up 4.3%. Ohridska Bank is listed on the Macedonian Stock Exchange and is included in its blue-chip index MBI-10.