Foreign business chiefs have thrown their support behind Serbia's bid to boost inward investment to the impoverished country. The government has pinned its hopes for a renewed surge in foreign capital on this weekend's meeting – the first major financial event in ex-Yugoslavia since 1979.
Looking beyond the Balkan country's troubled history, investors are ready to cash in on taking a risk on the burgeoning market. "Serbia is a market with many opportunities and this meeting is helping us to increase our business here," says Marjan Kramar, CEO of Slovenian bank Nova Ljubljanska Banka, one of the biggest banks in the region. "Investing in Serbia can also be risky but this is also an excellent opportunity for us to understand the nature of that risk."
The bank, which already operates in Serbia with a 1.7% market share, hopes to command 10% of the market over the next three to five years. It has also had "unofficial confirmation" for its tender to buy Continental Bank.
NLB is just one of many investors looking to step up its operations in the country. Birgit Maier of Austrian construction company Porr pointed out that her firm also has plans to start investing in the region. "This is the perfect opportunity for us to invest in the region," she said. "There are a lot of opportunities here in the construction industry and we want to get in early."
"We have come here for more information about the region, to meet people who can tell us what's going on, and to make business contacts," she said, adding that this is the first time her company is attending the annual meeting.
Lorenzo Roncari, president of American Bank of Albania's Greek operations, said he had come to learn. However, he said that "usually the statements you hear [at the meeting] are too general. I want to hear in detail what the difference is in EBRD's policy for funding SMEs. This is a region of SMEs - there is no IBM, Pfizer or Unilever here – so these questions should be addressed."
Dimitrios Papalexopoulos, managing director of Titan Cement, a Greek firm, said that despite the complexities of the region, attending the event helped interested companies gain clarity on their prospects. "I am here to learn and make contacts," he said.
Historian Misha Glenny, moderating the first business forum, expressed confidence that those who had come to learn about the region would take a positive message home. "Things have changed fundamentally in the region," he said, pointing out that the meeting would shift the regional focus from issues like Kosovo and The Hague Tribunal to growth and prospects. He called for delegates to "go back and start telling their colleagues to start investing."
The reaction of ordinary Belgraders to the meeting, however, was mixture of optimism and bemusement. Taxi driver Zoran Tanovic, for example, was indicative of a common viewpoint. "I have heard the meeting is taking place but don't know anything about it. In principle, I think it's a good thing, it shows that the road to Europe is opening up to Serbia."
Boutiques in the Sava Centre were open for trade yesterday but with low expectations of an immediate bonanza from delegates. One, Aleksandra Malinovic, commented: "We are not expecting anything today and will probably make a loss on Monday because the Sava Centre is closed to the public. However, I am happy that the meeting has come to Belgrade because it will be good for Serbia."
At least one trader in the Sava Centre was happy with new business generated by the meeting. Snezana Popovic Jaric of Omega Trade's bureau de change described business as "solid".