The long-running saga over the sale of a majority stake in Slovenian retailer Mercator to Croatian rival Agrokor has taken another turn as the sellers announced a freeze on negotiations.

The announcement was made yesterday (20 December) by the Nova Ljubljanska Banka (NLB), a bank which is one of 12 parties looking to sell their combined stake. It follows the resignation of Bozo Jasovic, CEO of NLB. No reasons were given for his departure.

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A statement from NLB said: “The bank’s supervisory board (has) decided to postpone the adoption of the decision on sale.”

Mercator’s website said it will not “create any new positions or actions” in connection with the sales process before an 11 January meeting.

Last month Mercator’s management refused to support for talks to sell the company to Croatian rival Agrokor, citing concerns over third-party involvement.

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