Venko Filipce, head of North Macedonia’s main opposition Social Democrats, SDSM. Photo: SDSM.
The opposition Social Democrats, SDSM, on Thursday accused the government of trying to silence it and protect the local subsidiary of Serbia’s failed Alta Banka.
The claim came after North Macedonia’s National Bank filed criminal complaints against four senior SDSM party officials over their statements about the bank’s condition.
The SDSM said the bank’s criminal complaints against party leader Venko Filipce and three others were intended to put pressure on the party, accusing Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski of acting “in a panic to protect Alta Banka”.
Filipce wrote on Facebook that his party would file its own criminal complaints over Alta Banka’s entry into North Macedonia and its handling of citizens’ and public enterprises’ funds.
On Wednesday, North Macedonia’s National Bank confirmed that it had filed criminal complaints over statements made by senior SDSM members containing “serious and unfounded accusations” about Alta Banka Bitola, the North Macedonia subsidiary of the recently bankrupted Serbian Alta Banka. The National Bank did not specify the alleged criminal offences.
On November 5, Mickoski called for prosecutors to investigate the SDSM for the “criminal offence of sabotage”, accusing it of spreading lies and putting citizens in a state of unjustified insecurity and fear.
Serbia’s central bank revoked the operating licence of Alta Banka in Belgrade on October 31, citing the deterioration in its financial position. Bankruptcy proceedings followed.
Its North Macedonia subsidiary, in which the Belgrade bank holds a 95.17 per cent stake, was placed under temporary administration by North Macedonia’s central bank on November 1.
This was intended to protect the local bank’s assets and depositors while its ownership situation is resolved. It has resulted in temporary restrictions on customers’ access to their money, triggering concern among savers and queues at ATMs.
The SDSM has questioned how and why Alta Banka was given a permit to enter the North Macedonia market in 2025, and whether the origin of its capital was properly checked.
Filipce has alleged links between the bank’s Serbian owner, businessman Davor Macura, and Serbian ex-President Aleksandar Vucic’s political and business circles.
He raised suspicions that the bank could have been used for money laundering, involving Russian and other questionable capital. His party has also questioned whether the bank’s reported financial assets actually exist and whether political influence affected the National Bank’s decisions.
Filipce has claimed that as much as 150 to 180 million euros could be at stake, questioning whether customers, including pensioners receiving payments through the bank, would be able to access their money.
On Wednesday, in parliament, Central Bank Governor Trajko Slaveski insisted Alta Banka Bitola was financially sound, and should be offered to another potential buyer.
He refused to disclose how many big corporate clients, including state-owned companies and public enterprises, hold accounts with Alta Banka Bitola, which could shed more light on the extent of the problem, calling it a “banking secret”.
Chief Public Prosecutor Nenad Saveski at the same hearing declined to answer whether the Prosecutor’s Office had opened an initial investigation into the bank, insisting that, too, was confidential.
Despite the political storm surrounding it, Alta Banka Bitola is a relatively small player in North Macedonia’s banking sector.
It ranked in 12th place among the country’s 14 banks in terms of total assets in 2025, with assets of around 11.3 billion denars [about 184 million euros], representing just 1.21 per cent of the banking market.