At today's press conference, members of the Management Board, together with Mr. Dušan Jovanovič, Chairman of Nova KBM's Supervisory Board, presented the most important decisions reached at yesterday's meeting of the Supervisory Board. A part of the meeting was devoted to the discussion of decisions affecting the changes in the Bank's Management Board. The Management Board will consist of two members: apart from Mr. Andrej Plos, who will assume the position of the president of the Management Board from 1 January 2012, Mrs. Manja Skernišak, current member of the Management Board, will also remain on the Board. In accordance with the Bank's Articles of Association, a Management Board member is obliged to perform his/her duties until the new management is appointed.
Mr. Dušan Jovanovič, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, said that in view of adverse economic conditions under which the Bank operates, the changes in the Bank's management can be considered appropriate. »The purpose of the decision reached by the Supervisory Board was to ensure the stability of the Bank, professional continuity, an influx of ideas for future development, and better operating results, all of which will stimulate the share price to recover. Therefore, we were of the opinion that it was reasonable to adopt a decision on the mutual termination of the term of office of Mr. Kovačič, President of the Management Board.« He expressed confidence in the new management and in further constructive cooperation with Management Board members. Further, he said he believes Mr. Plos will continue to perform his duties with the same due care and attention as he did as a Management Board member.
Mr. Matjaž Kovačič, President of the Bank's Management Board, said the following regarding his resignation: »I believe that as a sustainable and well-balanced management team we have successfully achieved all the objectives we have set, and have done our utmost to overcome all the obstacles under these challenging economic conditions. I wish the new management every success in their future endeavours. We have noticed that the majority shareholder has lost confidence in the work of the Management Board, which, according to our opinion, could negatively affect operations of the Bank. The Bank has certainly evolved over the years and a number of changes have taken place, including the listing of its shares on the domestic and a foreign stock exchange. I am convinced that the Bank was following the right development path, yet the crisis has left its mark on our operations. Therefore, I am of the opinion that Mr. Plos, who has to date been responsible for risk management, accounting and controlling, support to commercial activities, and strategic development, is really an excellent replacement.« As regards his future career, Mr. Kovačič said that he will first take some time off. He also pointed out that all the activities conducted under his management were in strict compliance with the law and carried out with due care.
Mr. Andrej Plos, who will take over the management of the Bank from 1 January 2012, expressed at today's meeting with journalists his belief that the current changes in the Management Board will under no circumstances have any negative effect on the operations of the Bank and that the work of the Management Board will be carried out in line with the adopted strategy. »The Bank has its vision and has clearly defined its target client segments and markets. The first step will be the adoption of the plan for 2012, which is already being drafted under difficult circumstances and numerous challenges. The Bank is well capitalised and financially stable; our objective, however, is to improve its profitability. Improving the profitability of the Bank will therefore be one of the priorities to be dealt with in the coming period. I am already thinking about the new management team, but I do not wish to disclose any names until the talks start« concluded Mr. Plos.
