LJUBLJANA, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Serbia's AIK bank is allowed to buy more than 50 percent of Slovenia's Gorenjska Banka, the Bank of Slovenia said on its website.
AIK bought 19.4 percent of Gorenjska last year and is the second largest shareholder of the small Slovenian bank which is mainly owned by local companies.
AIK told Slovenian daily newspaper Delo in November it hoped to buy a majority stake of Gorenjska, adding it planned to grow the business.
AIK was not immediately available for comment on Thursday.
Slovenian tourism and finance firm Sava, Gorenjska's largest shareholder, last year teamed up with some other investors to put their stakes up for sale, which together exceed 50 percent of Gorenjska's equity.
Some of the biggest banks in Slovenia are still state owned and the government controls about 45 percent of the banking sector. Several are owned by foreign banks including France's Societe Generale, Italy's Unicredit and Intesa Sanpaolo, Russia's Sberbank and Austria's Sparkasse and Addiko Bank. (Reporting by Marja Novak; Editing by Mark Potter)