Serbia's finance ministry has invited investors to file expressions of interest to purchase a stake of at least 50.1% in Komercijalna banka a.d. Beograd, including the entire 41.75% holding the Serbian state owns in the lender.

The selected buyer will be able to acquire a stake of up to 83.23% in the lender. In addition to the state-owned holding, the offer also includes the entire or part of a 41.48% stake held in Komercijalna by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, IFC Capitalization Fund, DEG - Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH and Swedfund International AB, SeeNews said May 31.

The deadline for submitting expressions of interest is June 21. To be considered, bidders must meet certain criteria, including involvement in banking activities in the last three years and holding or managing banking assets worth at least €1 billion as of the end of 2018 or owning a stake of at least 20% in the last 10 years in at least one banking group with assets of more than €1 billion. Selected investors will be invited to participate in the next stage of the sale process.

A consortium led by investment bank Lazard serves as Serbia's adviser on the privatization of Komercijalna banka.