Slovenia Bailout Escape Plagued by Communist-Style Lenders

There’s little evidence of Slovenia’s communist past, save for a few statues of former Balkan strongman Josip Broz Tito. And its banking industry.

Once a standout among the former eastern bloc nations that clamored to join the European Union, Slovenia was the first to adopt the euro and is the only ex-Yugoslav member of the 27-nation bloc. It is also the only one that has yet to privatize its largest banks. State lenders have an 80 percent market share, with corporate debt-to-equity ratios among the highest in Europe, according to the International Monetary Fund.