CCA clears the acquisition of Croatia banka by Hrvatska poštanska banka

The Croatian Competition Agency (CCA) has approved, in Phase I, a concentration arising from the acquisition of sole control on a permanent basis by Hrvatska poštanska banka d.d., Zagreb, over Croatia banka d.d., Zagreb.

The concentration is implemented through the acquisition of direct controlling interest within the meaning of Article 15(1), point 2, of the Croatian Competition Act. The CCA received the complete notification of the concentration on 17 June 2026, in line with Article 20 of the Competition Act. The notification was submitted by Hrvatska poštanska banka d.d. as the notifying party.

On 18 June 2026, the CCA published on its website a public invitation to all interested parties to submit comments and opinions on the proposed concentration. No observations or comments were received within the prescribed period which expired on 29 June 2026.

The concentration primarily takes place in the credit institutions sector in the Republic of Croatia, in particular the markets for household deposits, deposits from other non-financial undertakings, loans to households and loans to other non-financial undertakings.

Hrvatska poštanska banka d.d. and Croatia banka d.d. are universal banks providing banking services and other basic and ancillary financial services in the Republic of Croatia. HPB is also active in the investment fund management market and real estate management market.

Measured by the total assets of the banks in the Republic of Croatia, HPB is the fifth-largest bank, with a market share of approximately 5% – 10%, while Croatia banka ranks seventeenth, with a market share below 5 %. The implementation of the concentration will not alter the market structure or the ranking of competitors, and HPB’s post-merger market share will remain within the range of approximately 5% – 10%.

At the level of the individual relevant markets, the parties’ post-merger market shares will remain moderate. In the overall market for household deposits, as well as in the market for sight deposits, the parties would have a combined market share of approximately 5 % – 10%. In the market for household term deposits, their combined market share would amount to approximately 10% –15 %.

In the overall market for deposits from non-financial undertakings, the market for loans to households—including the markets for housing loans and general-purpose cash loans—and the market for loans to non-financial undertakings, the parties’ post-merger market share would be approximately 5% – 10%.

In its assessment of the compatibility of the concentration, the CCA took particular account of the fact that the credit institutions sector in the Republic of Croatia continues to be characterised by the presence of several large banks. The parties’ most significant competitors are Zagrebačka banka, Privredna banka Zagreb and Erste & Steiermärkische Bank, which together account for more than half of the overall market and retain leading positions in all the segments examined.

The CCA also took into account that the transaction constitutes a consolidation in the banking sector that is expected to strengthen HPB’s competitive position and create the conditions for it to compete more effectively with and exert stronger competitive pressure on the largest banks in the Republic of Croatia. At the same time, the structure of the banking sector, characterised by several leading banks and a larger number of smaller banks, will not be significantly altered because of the concentration.

Given that the concentration will not have a significant effect on competition in the relevant markets, and that neither the parties’ market shares nor the market structure indicate the creation or strengthening of a dominant position, the CCA found that it may reasonably be presumed that the concentration is not prohibited within the meaning of Article 16 of the Competition Act, as it does not give rise to a significant impediment to effective competition.