The Financial Market in Serbia Performing the Function of Financing Economy and Business

The financial market in Serbia, as the most important element of the financial system, and its influence on the economy and business financing is the subject of this work. The growth of the financial system in Serbia, which is extremely bank-centred, was slowed down in 2008 comparing to the previous year, due to the credit activity which was also slowed down. Banks, managing 90% of the total financial resources, are the most important factor in the growth of the financial system in Serbia. The growth of the financial market in Serbia, according to the market capitalization indicator from the beginning of 2003, has significantly expanded. Due to the shallowness of the capital market, companies, as a significant external factor of financing, used credits. Certificate of deposit trade of National Bank of Serbia, in the scope of repo-operation, is dominant on the securities market with 95% of share. The total value of share trade in 2008 was about 2.5 billion euro, which is 4.5% of all securities trade. Apart from the National Bank of Serbia securities, market bonds and other debt securities, there is no emission of corporative bonds. The privatization market of shares is emptying, and the main reason is the fact that the market is not actually functioning as a market of shares, but a business market. A fast concentration of ownership, results from a low protection of proprietary rights of minority shareholders. Namely, capitalization, as a part of the transition process, should provide minimal quality of corporative management. If the level of protection of the investors is not raised, no improvement of business efficiency will result from the process of privatization. The process of ownership concentration eliminates shares from the financial market, in order to avoid a possible loss of control and strengthen the ownership-supervising structure, causes numerous negative effects for the corporation itself as well as for the financial market. If the financial market remains insolvent, it will influence its future and potentials of an external financing of the companies which still exist as open corporations. The major influence of the current market condition on the corporative sector is an increased possibility of decreased value of their shares, in other words, of their owners’ wealth. Certain changes in the banking sector are inevitable for the further development of the financial sector in Serbia, and that is an increase of it capacity (credit offers) and efficiency (decreased intervention cost). In order to meet the conditions and make sense, it is necessary for the financial market in Serbia to develop its basic functions, that is, the strategic aim of the financial market development is its qualifying to finance the business sector. It is necessary to make different kinds of changes, explained here, as to make the financial market gain the mentioned strategic goal.