Financial accounts

Published: 1/2/2015 Modified: 27/10/2023

Financial accounts show the values of stocks, transactions, valuation and exchange rate adjustments as well as other changes of financial assets and liabilities of institutional sectors, classified by the institutional sector and by the financial instrument. Financial accounts consist of financial statistics data, which are closely linked to the national accounts statistics data, measure the financial worth of the entire economy and its individual segments and quantify the changes in this financial worth due to net lending/borrowing among sectors.

Methodology - financial accounts

Published: 19/1/2016 Modified: 26/10/2021

Table T1 Balance sheets for financial assets and liabilities (stocks) at the end of year (non-consolidated)
Table T2 Balance sheets for financial assets and liabilities (stocks) at the end of year (consolidated)
Table T3 Balance sheets for financial assets and liabilities (stocks) at the end of quarter (non-consolidated)

Financial Accounts Statistics - Balance sheets for financial assets and liabilities

(stocks) - basic terminology and methodology

Balance sheets for financial assets and liabilities (stocks) in the Financial Accounts Statistics represent a group of tables which show the values of financial assets and liabilities stocks on a specified day (most commonly the last day in a period) by individual institutional sectors and financial instruments (balance sheets). A detailed analysis of data on assets and liabilities stocks shows the structure of the value of financial assets by individual institutional sectors, the structure and representation of individual financial instruments, the size and the role of financial intermediation in the economy (i.e. financial market depth) and the degree of the economy's financial openness to the rest of the world.

The starting methodological basis for the compilation of annual financial accounts is defined by the European System of National and Regional Accounts (European System of Accounts- ESA 2010) which defines the basic provisions regarding sectorisation, financial instruments classification, position and transaction data recording and valuation and adjustment rules.

Financial accounts are compiled on the basis of currently available data sources. These include monetary statistics and international investment position (Croatian National Bank data), statistical reports of leasing companies (Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency data), statistical reports of insurance and reinsurance corporations, statistical reports of investment and pension funds (Croatian National Bank and Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency data), annual reports of corporations GFI POD (Financial Agency), reports on central and local government equity holdings in corporations (Restructuring and Sale Centre, Ministry of Physical Planning, Construction and State Assets and Ministry of Finance), data on general government debt (Ministry of Finance and Croatian National Bank) and the Zagreb Stock Exchange trading reports.

Institutional sectors shown in the Financial Accounts Statistics have been harmonised with the methodological standards of ESA 2010 to the greatest extent possible.

TOTAL - REPUBLIC OF CROATIA (S1)

This sector shows the sum total of financial assets and liabilities of all domestic institutional sectors described below.

The non-financial corporations sector (S11) consists of public non-financial corporations, national private non-financial corporations and foreign controlled non-financial corporations. This sector covers all institutional units which meet the criteria prescribed by sectoral classification of institutional units for the relevant subsector. Non-financial corporations consist of institutional units which are independent legal entities and market producers and whose principal activity is the production of goods and/or non-financial services.

The financial corporations sector (S12) covers the following subsectors: monetary financial institutions, other financial institutions, insurance corporations and pension funds.

Monetary financial institutions consist of the central bank (S121) and other monetary financial institutions. The central bank is the Croatian National Bank. Other monetary financial institutions consist of deposit-taking corporations except the central bank (S122) and money market funds (MMF) (S123). Deposit-taking corporations except the central bank cover credit institutions (banks, savings banks and housing savings banks). Credit institutions are institutions authorised by the Croatian National Bank in accordance with the Credit Institutions Act. The credit institutions sector does not include banks undergoing liquidation and bankruptcy proceedings. Money market funds include all financial corporations and quasi-corporations, except those classified in the central bank and credit institutions subsector, which are principally engaged in financial intermediation. Their business is to issue investment fund shares or units and make investments primarily in short-term debt instruments, deposits and money market fund shares/units. Their investment objective is to maintain the principal of the fund and generate yield in accordance with money market instruments' interest rates.

Other financial institutions consist of investment funds other than money market funds, other financial intermediaries, financial auxiliaries and captive financial institutions and money lenders.

Non-MMF investment funds (S124) consist of all forms of collective investment schemes, except those classified in the MMF subsector, which are principally engaged in financial intermediation. Their business is to issue investment fund shares or units which are not close substitutes for deposits and, on their own account, to make investments primarily in long-term financial assets.

Other financial intermediaries, except insurance corporations and pension funds (S125) are institutions which are principally engaged in financial intermediation by incurring liabilities in forms other than currency, deposits, and close substitutes for deposits. They include leasing companies, factoring corporations, banks undergoing liquidation, banks undergoing bankruptcy, credit unions, etc.

Financial auxiliaries (S126) are institutions which are principally engaged in auxiliary financial activities and include, for instance, stock exchanges, foreign exchange offices, financial regulatory authorities, insurance agents and brokers, investment firms, investment and pension funds managers, Central Depository & Clearing Company (CDCC), Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency (HANFA), Financial Agency (FINA), etc.

Captive financial institutions and money lenders (S127) cover all financial corporations and quasi-corporations which are neither engaged in financial intermediation nor in providing financial auxiliary services and where most of their assets or their liabilities are not transacted on open markets. They include in particular: (a) trusts, estates, agencies accounts or "brass plate" companies; (b) holding companies that hold controlling levels of equity of a group of subsidiary corporations and whose principal activity is owning the group without administering or managing the group; (c) special purpose entities which raise funds in open markets to be used by their parent corporation; (d) units which provide financial services exclusively with own funds, or funds provided by a sponsor and incur the financial risk of the debtor defaulting (e.g. corporations engaged in lending to students or for foreign trade from funds received from a government unit or a non-profit institution, and pawnshops that predominantly engage in lending); (e) special purpose government funds, usually called sovereign wealth funds, if classified as financial corporations.

Insurance corporations (S128) consist of all financial corporations and quasi-corporations which are principally engaged in financial intermediation as a consequence of the pooling of risks mainly in the form of direct insurance or reinsurance.

Pension funds (S129) consist of all financial corporations and quasi-corporations which are principally engaged in financial intermediation as the consequence of the pooling of social risks and needs of the insured persons (social insurance). Pension funds as social insurance schemes provide income in retirement, and often benefits for death and disability.

The general government sector (S13) consists of institutional units which are non-market producers whose output is intended for individual and collective consumption, and are financed by compulsory payments made by units belonging to other sectors, and institutional units principally engaged in the redistribution of national income and wealth.

It consists of the subsector central government (S1311), state government (S1312, which does not exist in the Republic of Croatia), local government (S1313) and social security funds (S1314). The central government consists of state administration bodies (ministries, offices of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, state administration organisations and state administration offices in counties) and Croatian Motorways, Croatian Roads, Croatian Waters, Croatian Radio and Television, and Croatian Railways Infrastructure.

Social security funds include Croatian Pension Insurance Administration, Croatian Health Insurance Fund and Croatian Employment Service.

Local government includes units of local and regional self-government and institutional units established and controlled by the local government.

The households sector (S14) primarily consists of individual consumers but also of individual consumers and entrepreneurs (market producers). This sector also includes individuals or groups of individuals as producers of goods and non-financial services for exclusively own final use.

The non-profit institutions serving households sector (S15) consists of non-profit institutions which are separate legal entities, which serve households and which are private non-market producers. Their principal resources are voluntary contributions in cash or in kind from households and from payments made by the government and from property income.

The rest of the world sector (S2) is a grouping of units without any characteristic functions and resources; it consists of non-resident units insofar as they are engaged in transactions with resident institutional units, or have other economic links with resident units. Its accounts provide and overall view of the economic relationships linking the national economy with the rest of the world. The institutions of the EU and international organisations are included. The rest of the world sector includes all foreign natural and legal persons.

Financial instruments shown in the Financial Accounts Statistics have been aligned with methodological standards ESA 2010 to the greatest extent possible.

The monetary gold and special drawing rights (SDRs) (AF1) category consists of two subcategories of financial instruments: monetary gold held by monetary authorities and special drawing rights (SDRs). SDRs are international reserve assets created by the International Monetary Fund and which are allocated to its member countries to supplement existing reserve assets.

The instrument category currency and deposits (AF2) includes currency in circulation used as a legal tender and all types of deposits (e.g. transferrable, savings sight deposits and time deposits) in national and foreign currencies.

Debt securities (AF3) are all negotiable financial instruments serving as evidence of debt. They include: promissory notes, bonds, certificates of deposit, and commercial papers. All domestic sectors and the rest of the world sector may hold debt securities as financial assets. Debt securities may also be financial liabilities of the countersector, i.e. of financial and non-financial corporations, central, government and local authorities and the rest of the world.

The instrument category loans (AF4) consists of all short-term and long-term forms of lending (including repo arrangements), i.e. of financial assets which arises as a result of creditors lending to debtors, i.e. of financial liabilities arising as a result of debtors borrowing from creditors.

Equity and investment fund shares or units (AF5) are financial instruments giving residual claim on the assets of the units that issued the shares or units. This category includes, for example, shares (ordinary and preferential, listed or unlisted), other equity in corporations or quasi-corporations, shares in collective investment funds, equity in limited liability companies, government investments in the capital of international organisations which are legally constituted as corporations with share capital, etc.

Insurance, pension and standardised guarantee schemes (AF6) consist of non-life insurance technical reserves, life insurance and annuity entitlements, pension entitlements, claims of pension funds on pension managers, entitlements to non-pension benefits, and provisions for calls under standardised guarantees.

Financial derivatives and employee stock options (AF7) are financial instruments linked to a specified financial instrument or indicator or commodity, through which specific financial risks can be traded in financial markets in their own right. Employee stock options are contracts concluded on a specific date which give the employees the right to purchase a specified number of the employer's shares at a predetermined price or on a given date or within a given time span immediately following the date on which such right can be exercised.

Other accounts receivable/payable (AF8) are financial liabilities created as counterparts to financial and non-financial transactions where there is a timing difference between these transactions and the corresponding payments (for example: trade credits and advances, trade credits accepted by factoring corporations except when regarded as a loan, arrears concerning the payment of goods and services, when not evidenced by a loan) and all other accounts receivable/payable arising from timing differences between the transaction and the corresponding payment such as taxes and social contributions, wages and salaries, dividends, interest, transactions in financial assets on the secondary market, etc.