Serbia and Montenegro's banking system is still not functional despite the lifting of international sanctions. The largest commercial banks are unable to make international transfers of funds or issue letters of credit. Foreign assets of Yugoslavian banks remain frozen, because UN sanctions prohibit releasing assets when republics of the former Yugoslav SFR (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia) have competing claims to those assets. Moreover, banks are severely hampered by a lack of liquidity, a result of the tight monetary policy prevalent in Yugoslavia. Although over 100 banks continued to operate at of 1997, about 90% of all banking assets were immobile.
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