Davor Macura: Assets Frozen, 35 Hectares of Former IMT
The Organized Crime Prosecutor's Office orders cover Alta holding and Alta lizing, land in Senjak, Zemun Polje and Sopot, and about 35 hectares of former IMT land.
About 35 hectares of land in New Belgrade, once part of the Industry of Engines and Tractors (IMT), is among the assets that Davor Macura, the owner of Alta Banka, can no longer dispose of. The orders were issued by the Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office (TOK), and Insajder reported the details on November 11.
The ban comes nine days after Macura was detained and eleven days after the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) revoked the bank’s operating license.
What does the asset freeze cover?
According to Insajder’s reporting, the orders do not concern a single property but the assets of several companies as well as Macura’s personal holdings. The list includes:
- the assets of Alta holding and Alta lizing
- Macura’s personal real estate and land in Senjak, Zemun Polje and Sopot
- garages in New Belgrade
- construction land and a residential building owned by Campari International, of which Macura is the sole owner
- about 35 hectares of construction land that formerly belonged to IMT in New Belgrade
How did Macura come to own the IMT land?
Insajder reports that Macura’s company ABL Solvent bought part of the real estate from the IMT bankruptcy estate in 2021 for about 70 million euros. Under a provision of the Law on Planning and Construction, it then became the owner of roughly 35 hectares on the site free of charge.
A residential district with more than 1,600 apartments, four high-rise towers, and commercial and sports facilities was planned for the area.
Why did TOK go after the assets?
According to the Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office, Macura and two of his associates are suspected of abuse of office. TOK alleges that over six years they illegally took about 380 million euros out of Alta Banka. Macura denies guilt, and the Higher Court in Belgrade has ordered him held in custody for up to 30 days.
The timeline is short. The NBS revoked Alta Banka’s license on October 31, Macura was detained on November 2 after a 30-hour search, and the asset freeze orders were reported on November 11.
Goran Ilic, a professor at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Law, told Insajder that it is now up to the court to decide whether Macura’s assets will be temporarily seized. According to him, Macura and his lawyers can submit evidence that the property was lawfully acquired. A freeze, in other words, is not a seizure: ownership stays as it is, and the court decides what happens to it.
What about Alta Banka’s depositors?
Separately from the proceedings against the owner, payouts of insured deposits are under way. Postal Savings Bank (Postanska stedionica) announced on November 11 that clients of Alta Banka, now in bankruptcy, can book appointments on its website and that payouts begin on November 13. The money comes from the Deposit Insurance Agency, and Postanska stedionica carries out the payouts on its behalf and for its account. Clients have 57 payout points across Serbia.
While deposits are paid from the Agency’s funds, the court has yet to decide whether the assets covered by the TOK orders will be temporarily seized. Macura is a suspect, and guilt has not been established.
