SEPA Steering Group established

The first meeting of the SEPA Steering Group, organised by the Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations of the European Commission (DG NEAR), was held today in an online format. It was attended by central bank governors of the Western Balkans and Moldova, as well as representatives of the European Payments Council (EPC), the World Bank, the European Central Bank (ECB), and DG FISMA.

The establishment of this group aims to bring together the central banks of the Western Balkans and Moldova, the EPC, the ECB and the World Bank, under the auspices of the European Commission. The group will serve as a key platform for exchanging experiences, identifying challenges in the process of aligning with SEPA schemes, and developing practical solutions to overcome them. Considering that Western Balkan economies are at different stages of alignment with SEPA standards, DG NEAR emphasised the importance of coordination and mutual support in this process.

The Governor of the National Bank of Serbia, Jorgovanka Tabaković, stated the readiness of the Republic of Serbia and the National Bank of Serbia to support other economies in the region in the second phase of the SEPA project, which involves the implementation of the technical infrastructure for payment processing. She pointed out that the NBS IPS system is the first and, so far, the only instant payment system in the region, and one of the first instant payment systems in the world, as well as the experience the National Bank of Serbia has in executing such a significant project.

This system has been successfully operating in Serbia for more than six years, allowing citizens and businesses to make real-time payments 365 days a year, with maximum simplicity and security. Relying on years of experience and the successes achieved through the implementation of this innovative payment infrastructure, Serbia has positioned itself as a leader in the region in the field of payment services digitalisation and payment system modernisation and serves as an example of how modern technology can improve the financial system and contribute to economic development.

Additionally, the National Bank of Serbia, as part of the process of joining SEPA, is already holding discussions with the ECB about ways to connect Serbia’s payment infrastructure with that of the EU (by linking the NBS IPS system with the ECB TIPS system). The goal is to ensure that users have the same instant service quality for international payments as they have had for years with domestic payments. Furthermore, the aim is to create conditions for reducing charges relating to the execution of international payment transactions, specifically within SEPA.