Macedonian opposition politician Ivon Velichkovski has raised serious concerns about the involvement of internationally sanctioned individuals in economic and financial activities in North Macedonia, warning that this poses not only an economic threat but also a national security risk.
He highlighted the involvement of two controversial Serbian figures from northern Kosovo, Milan Radoičić and Zvonko Veselinović, in the financial and construction sectors of North Macedonia.
In an op-ed published on Koha.mk, Velichkovski pointed out close ties between the Serbian financial group Alta—which aims to acquire Stopanska Banka Bitola (SBB)—and figures linked to regional political and security controversies.
- The company Danica Park, part of Alta’s ownership network and liquidated in 2024, was an investor in a residential project on land owned by spouses of business partners originally from Kosovo, including Veselinović and Radoičić.
- Milan Radoičić, former deputy head of the Serbian List in Kosovo and on the U.S. sanctions list, is known for leading the armed group responsible for the 2023 Banjska attack.
Velichkovski stressed that due to the absence of laws banning economic activities by sanctioned persons, North Macedonia risks becoming an “offshore haven” for suspicious capital from the region, leading to a “Cyprization” of the country and turning it into a conduit for money laundering and political influence from Belgrade.
His political movement, Nova Republika, has for two years demanded the adoption of legislation that would enable freezing assets of individuals on sanction lists by the U.S., EU, UN, and allied countries.
This warning coincides with the ongoing process of Alta Banka’s acquisition of Stopanska Banka Bitola, owned by Davor Macura, a figure close to Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, which has sparked political and security concerns in Skopje.
Velichkovski urges state institutions and NATO diplomats in North Macedonia to take measures to safeguard the country’s Euro-Atlantic integrity.
