Владата во Подгорица го повлече одобрението за заложно право на Алта банка врз имот во Луштица Беј

The Government of Montenegro withdrew an earlier approval that would have allowed Luštica Development to place a mortgage on state-owned land at the Luštica Bay resort as collateral for a €15 million loan from Alta Bank – Belgrade.

The contested assets are the marina and the coastal promenade in the Luštica Bay complex near Tivat, constructed on roughly 18,000 square metres of state land.

Change of course within a month

According to official records, on 29 June the Montenegrin government had accepted Luštica Development’s request to enable a mortgage in favour of Alta Bank – Belgrade as security for the planned €15 million credit. On 28 July the cabinet of Prime Minister Milojko Spajić reversed that decision and annulled the prior conclusion, effectively preventing the state-owned marina and promenade from being encumbered by the Belgrade bank.

In its short explanation for the reversal, the government did not list a specific legal ground but said that “одредени правни и фактички околности” had arisen and therefore the basis for entering the mortgage ceased to exist. Land-registry data checked later show that no mortgage in favour of Alta Bank was ever recorded.

Luštica Development told reporters that it currently has no credit arrangements with Alta Bank. The company declined to answer whether it had previously had loans from the bank, their amounts, or what collateral had been used.

Alta Bank – Belgrade did not respond to questions about any cooperation with the Luštica investor or about the planned €15 million loan. Montenegro’s Ministry of Urbanism, Spatial Planning and State Property said the government initially accepted the arrangement because of the importance of continuing the investor’s cycle, but that “Luštica Development” failed to complete the activities that had been set as conditions for the consent; the ministry did not specify what those conditions were.

The dispute around Alta Bank also has a political dimension. The bank, which last year acquired Stopanska banka – Bitola in North Macedonia, has been linked in political debate to Serbian authorities. Opposition figures in Serbia connect the bank’s owner, businessman Davor Macura, to President Aleksandar Vučić, his brother Andrej Vučić and the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS); Belgrade authorities deny those claims.

According to figures published by the bank, as of 17 July 2026 Alta Bank – Belgrade holds 95,1754 percent of ordinary voting shares in the Macedonian Alta Bank, making it the dominant owner. The controversy prompted statements in North Macedonia: “ДУИ: Влезот на српската Алта банка во Македонија е обид на Белград да обезбеди стратегиска контрола врз клучните институции на државата”.

Photo: Луштица Девелопмент