"We're very well advanced on all these assessments but of course we need to factor in the results of the stress tests and decisions will come very soon," spokesman Antoine Colombani told the STA.

The Commission has been assessing the resolution plans of the top two banks, NLB and NKBM, which had already received state aid before, whereas the third bank to receive state aid, Abanka Vipa, is yet to submit a plan.

"I can only restate that as soon as we're ready we'll take the decisions," he said.

The statement comes after questions were raised about whether the EU's clearance of the bailout plan, which involve over EUR 3bn in state aid to the three banks, was delayed due to potential problems.

The central bank had initially expected that EU approval would be rapid in order to allow the government to carry out the recapitalisation plan quickly, but central bank governor Boštjan Jazbec warned today such an expectation might have been overly optimistic.

"We're counting on clearance within days...it took a while in other countries as well," Jazbec told reporters.

Spain, for example, waited almost two months before its bank restructuring plans were cleared by the EU.