Banks, EU – Baltic States, Financial Services, Lithuania

"We have no plans to change our policy in the foreseeable future," Axel Reiserer, head of media relations for Central and Eastern Europe at the EBRD, told.

Siauliu Bankas CEO Vytautas Sinius said the shareholders' agreement had become irrelevant.

"The agreement was signed a long time ago. It has been in force since 2005 and has already lost its relevance. At the time the EBRD invested in it, Siauliu Bankas needed that agreement so as to have agreements with its main shareholders," Sinius told. 

"The bank is stronger now. It has resolved all management issues and has strengthened its capital. Therefore, the shareholders saw no need to have that agreement in the long term", he said. 

The CEO added that the decision to terminate the shareholders' agreement had been taken by consensus. 

Siauliu Bankas said in a stock exchange release earlier in the day that its shareholders, including the EBRD, Aiva, Mintaka, the Alita Group and others, had signed an agreement to terminate the shareholders' agreement of June 2005.

Siauliu Bankas has recently said the EBRD will convert a 20-mln-euro subordinated loan into equity, thus increasing the Lithuanian bank's authorized capital by 16.57 mln euros to 174.2 mln euros.

The EBRD will raise its shareholding in Siauliu Bankas to 26%, from the current 18.2%, as a result of the loan conversion.

The EBRD became the Lithuanian bank's shareholder in 2005 through the acquisition of a 16.1% stake.