The proposal for the new recapitalisation was put forward after Tuesday's session of the bank's supervisory board that reviewed the bank's performance and its capital adequacy.

The bank said today that the decision was of a precautionary nature and had been made after the management and the supervisory board considered the negative developments in the economic environment and examined the bank's portfolio.

"This is a precautionary measure meant to ensure that the bank remains adequately capitalised in case of a negative turn of events in the economic and other areas," the bank stressed as it pointed to uncertainties related to the implementation of government measures for stabilising the banking system.

Further delays in the implementation of solutions will likely raise the costs of normalising the situation in banking and the economy, the bank warned.

The proposal will be discussed at the shareholders meeting scheduled for 29 December.

NLB's biggest shareholder is the state, which together with state-run KAD and SOD funds has a combined shareholding of 59%. The Belgian KBC bank owns roughly 22% in the Slovenian bank.