Governor Selimović in Rome for the signing of the Agreement on the establishment of an instant payment system in the Western Balkans

(Patria) - Today, in Palazzo Koch in Rome, a ceremony was held for the signing of the Letter of Intent on launching the project for the establishment of an instant payment system in the Western Balkans. It was attended by the Governor and Deputy Governor of the Bank of Italy, along with the governors and deputy governors of the central banks of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Montenegro.

The cooperation agreement stipulates that the Bank of Italy will deliver an instant payment system, based on a replica of the TIPS service, which is a European platform for real-time payment settlement, designed, created, and managed by the Bank of Italy on behalf of the Eurosystem. Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and Montenegro have joined the initiative, which has been approved by the Governing Council of the European Central Bank (North Macedonia reserves the right to join later).

The new platform, which will be operational within 18 months of its establishment – which is planned for the coming weeks – will enable payments in all currencies of the participating countries.

Additional functionalities will be developed after the initial implementation phase. It will also, using a technologically advanced and inexpensive solution, establish a bilateral link for payment settlement between the area served by TIPS and the Western Balkan region.

The signing of the Letter of Intent is an important step towards the integration of the Western Balkan countries into the financial system of the European Union.