Queues at ALTA Bank branch in Skopje's Biser mall; Governor Slaveski files criminal complaints
Customers waited up to two hours at the Biser branch while the National Bank eased withdrawal rules; governor Trajko Slaveski has filed criminal complaints against SDSM officials.
Long lines formed today outside the ALTA Bank branch in the Biser shopping centre in Skopje as customers tried to withdraw cash, with some waiting up to two hours. Inside the branch only two tellers were working and a security attendant allowed clients in one by one, according to witnesses.
Public unease and mixed reactions
Many of those in the queue said they were worried about their savings. One man said: "The bank is not safe. People wait even up to two hours, but the bank is already going to ruin and it's normal that people are afraid for their money in the bank." A woman from the capital added: "I don't know whether the same scenario as in Serbia will happen here. The Government should say that."
Opinions were split: another Skopje resident said he feared that no bank was safe today and pointed to previous bank problems, while a different customer tried to calm others: "I think the money is safe. We all know who signed for the bank's takeover. The money is secure — it's just that we people are panicky and think it will collapse."
The National Bank of the Republic of North Macedonia announced measures intended to ease access for ALTA Bank clients. It said the changes allow salary payments, together with payments of taxes and contributions, for companies that have regularly paid wages through ALTA in the past three months. "With the change, individuals are enabled to fully dispose of new inflows to their accounts in ALTA Bank AD Bitola, provided the funds come from payment accounts opened with other banks and payment service providers," the National Bank said.
The government has said it does not have the competence to intervene directly in ALTA's acquisition process because it is a transaction between two private companies and the National Bank is overseeing the procedure. Officials briefed that there are three potential buyers and claimed at least ten Macedonian companies face collection problems in Serbia linked to accounts associated with ALTA.
Separately, Governor Trajko Slaveski filed a joint criminal complaint naming SDSM leader Venko Filipche, vice-president Aleksandar Trajanovski and party general secretary Aleksandar Sasa Dimitrijevic, and lodged a separate complaint against SDSM's international cooperation secretary Andrej Zhernovski. SDSM replied by calling for the governor to be held accountable and by demanding his resignation.
The situation at the Biser branch reflects tensions that have already been reported in other towns in recent days, with episodes of pushing and unrest in Bitola, Strumica and Tetovo. For now, bank customers in Skopje continue to stand in line, uncertain about the coming days but eager to access their funds.
Photo: press material from the event
