Thus the volume of new mortgages more than doubled compared with 2001. Since the launch of this product in Slovakia, banks with mortgage lending licenses provided mortgages worth about SKK 15.5 billion.

Last year, Slovenska Sporitelna (SLSP) registered the biggest boom in mortgage lending when it provided SKK 2.8 billion in mortgages. Since July 1999, when it entered the mortgage lending market, it has provided mortgages of SKK 4 billion. Tatra Banka reports the same aggregate sum of mortgages. It entered the market in November 2000. Last year it provided mortgages of SKK 2.6 billion.

The mortgage pioneer, Vseobecna Uverova Banka (VUB), remains to be the biggest player on the market. It started providing mortgages already in October 1997 and since this time it supported housing construction by SKK 5.355 billion provided within mortgages. Out of this SKK 2.59 billion accounted for 2002.

Among other holders of mortgage lending licenses are Istrobanka (with aggregate mortgages of SKK 1.312 billion), HVB Bank Slovakia (SKK 281.6 million), the Slovak arm of CSOB, UniBanka, OTP Banka and Ludova Banka. The last four banks entered the mortgage market only during 2002. ING Bank is waiting for the license.