SUPPORTING CLIENTS AT ALL TIMES

We are aware of the consequences of the Coronavirus pandemic, but we were also ready to face them, so their impact on our operations will be much smaller than will be the case with companies that weren't orientated towards their own priorities – and those are clients and employees, and digital services, where we have been pioneers in many areas

ProCredit Bank is the only bank in Serbia with a hundred per cent German capital, which also has a direct impact on the way this bank operates and approaches its clients.

“We are guided by the principles that characterise the German economy, and those are precision, responsibility, security and quality. Investing in education, both of our colleagues and our clients, is a standard for us, and our commitment to focus on preserving the natural environment in everything we do is no less important,” says Ivan

We recently launched the most modern way of communicating with individuals, and that is the ability to open an account via video identification. This is just one of the digitalised services with which we’ve enabled clients to conduct their business with the bank from home

Smiljković, member of the ProCredit Bank Executive Board.

Being a German bank in Serbia also implies that a system of double control exists – on the part of the National Bank of Serbia and the German Board for Banking Supervision, BaFin, which takes care to ensure that all banks with German capital respect the same rules, regardless of where they operate, says our interlocutor, adding that “this type of control serves as a guarantee to our clients that we are an institution that they can trust and that they can rely on, and the previous period only proved this fact”.

Which of your services are digitalised? Do your clients also use part of their loans for digital - We started the digital transformation six years ago and transformation? can now state with pride that the client can complete - ProCredit Bank’s corporate clients are among the group everything they needs from the bank from their home. Also of the most respectable companies that are aware that testifying to this is the fact that we recently launched the digitalisation is not just a buzzword, but rather that the most modern way of communicating with individuals, and benefits of digitalisation are visible in all segments of that is the ability to open an account via video identificabusiness – both in more efficient processes that save tion. In just a few minutes, in a video conversation with our time and money, and in the quality of the services that advisor, anyone who is interested can open an account and are provided to clients. activate electronic and mobile banking, while payment cards are delivered to clients at their home address. Fitch Ratings recently confirmed the investment rating

We are one of the first banks in Serbia to introduce the of ProCredit Bank in Serbia. What does this decision Apple pay option, through cooperation with Mastercard. mean to you? Clients can now perform transactions - Confirmation of a good credit ratmore securely using just their phone. ing by one of the world’s largest ratIt is not necessary to enter the PIN ing agencies during times of crisis is code at a POS terminal to authorise an indicator that our operations in the transaction, regardless of the Serbia are extremely stable. It was amount, rather the transaction is aulikewise assessed that we have the thorised through a fingerprint or face absolute support of our shareholder ID and placing the phone close to the - ProCredit Holding, which means that contactless reader at the point of sale. all our financial and business risks are

Internally, we have implemented minimal. We will strive to maintain our the so-called “paperless concept”, with good position on the international list which the need to print documentation of institutional investors, but also to is reduced or eliminated completely. improve it, because it is only through Every employee of our bank has a progress, improvement and innovation qualified electronic certificate that that we can respond in the right way they use in their daily work. We have to all the current and future needs of thus significantly reduced the need our clients. for printed paper and contributed to protecting the environment. What impact will COVID-19 have on the operations of banks in Serbia How is your bank helping SMEs to and how do you respond to these overcome the crisis? challenges? - Small and medium-sized enterprises - It was precisely during the time of are the driving force of our economy, the Coronavirus pandemic that we which is why we believe that they need considered and long-term assistance, We will strive to maintain confirmed that all our investments in the digitalisation process made sense both in an advisory and financial sense, our good position on the in multiple ways. as well as through effective and achievable strategies and cooperation with international list of The banking system is extremely agile and always ready to adapt to development funds (IPARD, EIF), which institutional investors, but new challenges. Our aim is to exit this we’ve also offered clients in times like these. We are all on an unfamiliar also to improve it, because period professionally and responsibly, to be available to our clients, and to ground when it comes to the duration it is only through progress, consider our employees while doing of the pandemic, and as we view clients as partners, our support has not been lacking during the past six months i improvement and nnovation that we can so. We are aware of the consequences, but we were also ready to face them, so their impact on our operations will be - whether that related to approving respond in the right way to much smaller than will be the case with postponements on repayments, making new placements or the advisory all the current and future companies that weren’t orientated towards their own priorities – and role for which our bank is recognised. needs of our clients those are clients and employees.