NLB’s Response to Floods: Systemic Measures, Help for Employees and Donations to the Heavily Affected Municipalities

While the situation was going from bad to worse, the NLB shifted its focus to ensuring safety for our employees and clients and making sure that our business continues to run as normal. On Friday our branches remained closed in the severely affected parts of our country, but we still did our best to provide our banking services on digital channels through mobile and fixed networks and by supplying cash to accessible ATMs of all the banks and other partners. We did everything we could to open almost all the branches on the next working day. The only branch that remains closed tomorrow is the one in Mežica and we are working hard to have it opened as soon as possible.

As one of the key and systemically important institutions in this country we are coordinating our response to this natural disaster with the Banks Association, Bank of Slovenia and relevant ministries as well as other key institutions. Not unlike during the period of covid crisis, we have this time also prepared our own measures to help with the recovery after floods and help revive economy, including a more favourable lending line totalling EUR 100 million and, if necessary, moratoriums on the repayment of credit liabilities etc. Similar measures are being prepared for private persons.

Help for the employees, a 4-million donation for the worst-affected municipalities

In addition to that, the NLB will donate a total of EUR 4 million to the most afflicted municipalities for sustainable reconstruction and investments that are needed, for example in the regulation of waterways and protection against floods, which are meant to mitigate the consequences of similar disasters and consequently downscale a tragedy of similar proportions in the future.

The NLB will also come to the aid of our employees – several dozens of them were affected by this natural disaster – including, among other things, with solidarity aid for reconstruction. We will also give our employees an additional day off work if they want to join one of the organized actions to eliminate the consequences of floods.

Last weekend, nature taught us yet another valuable lesson in its very own extreme and ruthless way, which is that we, as the entire society, will have to adapt more to it with our behaviour and interventions. But at the same time, the thing that we cherish most in our memory is how, when things go from bad to worse, the Slovenians are there for each other and are always without a fault able to form this great bond that brings us closer together. Again and again and in whatever that may come.