Depositors and business owners interviewed by Meduza described losing access to their accounts after Serbia revoked Alta banka's license on October 30, disrupting everyday payments and business operations.
One interviewee, Anton, said his family had approximately €70,000 in its account, proceeds from a property sale. He said the banking app stopped working and he was unable to withdraw money from an ATM.
The National Bank of Serbia announced the revocation of Alta banka a.d. Beograd's license on October 30. Control of the bank was transferred to the Deposit Insurance Agency as part of insolvency proceedings. The regulator described the deposit insurance payout mechanism, with coverage of up to €50,000 per depositor subject to eligibility requirements. Claims above the insured amount must be pursued separately in the subsequent proceedings, and full recovery of those balances is not guaranteed.
A business owner named Dmitry said his bank card had stopped working and he needed to open another account to continue making business payments. Artyom, a photography teacher living in Montenegro, lost his usual way of withdrawing funds from PayPal and said he was now trying to find money for daily expenses.
A woman identified by the changed name Olga said the disruption affected accounts belonging to her company and employees. A representative of the human rights organization Freedom and Law said affected customers had sought legal advice and that a letter to the National Bank of Serbia was being prepared.
Some interviewees speculated that the decision reflected bias against Russian customers. The National Bank of Serbia said it revoked the license because the bank’s financial condition had deteriorated and depositors’ interests were at risk.