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The Government of the Republic of Serbia

In the service of citizens

100,000th company registered in Serbia

Belgrade, 9 May 2008

The Serbian Business Registers Agency held a meeting today themed “100,000 Move Serbia” to mark the registration of the 100,000th company in Serbia. The meeting was attended by State Secretary at the Ministry of Economy and Regional Development Verica Kalanovic, Director of the Business Registers Agency Zvonko Obradovic, and owner of the 100,000th company Andrijana Glavina.

Obradovic said that the first 100,000 companies have already put Serbia on the path of development, and pointed to the fact that Serbia needs many more new businesses, good business ideas and a lot of joint effort in order to reach the level of development it deserves.

He said that companies registered until now have already made a first step, and the state has offered support by making administrative procedures for registration easier and providing help for obtaining cheap loans for starting private businesses.

The agency now offers new services, which are constantly making the registration procedure faster. Now the status of a case may be checked by SMS or at the web portal www2.apr.sr.gov.yu/eng, and from May 12, it will also be possible to submit registration applications electronically.

Agency representatives informed the public today on the procedure for starting a business. Director of the Agency for the Development of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Entrepreneurship Dejan Jovanovic reminded those present that the deadline for submitting documents to obtain start-up loans is May 15, and informed them about the conditions for getting these loans.

Owner of the 100,00th company Andrijana Glavina, who plans to produce industrial packaging, will compete for a start-up loan from the Development Fund and the Agency for the Development of SMEs.

The registration of a company in the Business Registers Agency is a condition for obtaining a start-up loan worth €30,000, and loans are distributed by the Ministry of Economy and Regional Development.

Glavina was presented with a laptop computer by the company ComTrade Group, as well as one year of free internet services by Telekom Srbije.

Nearly 150 entrepreneurs and 50 new companies are registered daily at the Business Registers Agency. Some 4,000 new shops and 1,000 new companies are established every month.

The procedure of registration has been made extremely simple. The procedure used to last 51 days on average, today registration in the Business Registers Agency takes 48 hours, and registration for entrepreneurs requires only 24 hours.

The electronic database of the agency currently contains data on 313,500 business entities, 25,500 mortgages and 62,000 lease agreements.

The largest number of business entities is registered for business in the trade sector, while only 10% of the total number of registered firms is in the production sector. Recently, the agency has noted a growth in the number of firms in the areas of construction, transport and consulting and management.

Nearly RSD 20 billion will be invested in the small businesses sector through donations and loans, which is a great opportunity for those who see their future in a private business.