FIC ORGANIZED THE FIRST CONFERENCE ON FINANCIAL SERVICES

Financial Services Conference

CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Foreign Investors Council organized the first conference on financial services: DEVELOPMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES with the intention of opening and intensifying the dialogue of all interested parties on the further development of the financial services sector in Serbia, as well as improve the trust and protection of users, but also of all market participants.

The Conference was opened in the presence of numerous dignitaries with introductory speeches by the member of the FIC BoD and the president of the Executive Board of Raiffeisen Bank of Serbia, Mr. Zoran Petrović, and the Vice-Governor of the National Bank of Serbia, Ms. Dragana Stanić. In his opening address, a member of the FIC BoD and president of the Executive Board of Raiffeisen Bank of Serbia, Mr. Zoran Petrović, recalled the FIC Serbia initiatives in the field of financial services digitization, which were implemented in cooperation with the Government of the Republic of Serbia. In addition, he pointed out that the NBS recognized the recommendations of the FIC members and invested significant efforts in introducing electronic (digital) bills of exchange for legal entities and entrepreneurs, which full implementation is expected soon. “Motivated by the desire for constant improvement of quality and further development of the financial services sector, simultaneously strengthening the trust and protection of users, the FIC Serbia believes that the Conference on Financial Services will be the right place for an open dialogue and exchange of opinions to consider the opportunities and challenges it brings time ahead of us,” – emphasized Petrović.

FIC members made a significant contribution to the development of the financial services sector in Serbia by initiating numerous innovations and improvements to existing solutions that have already been implemented or are expected to be implemented soon.

Introduction of the service of issuing the so-called qualified signature in the cloud, then traffic recording electronically in real-time via the Internet, i.e., online fiscalization and electronic invoicing, and the introduction of the first registered electronic identification scheme, enabling the payment of monthly bills, making purchases in retail stores, and in online stores in a simple way through the national system IPS (Instant Payment System) using a QR code, represent exceptional progress made by the competent institutions, especially the NBS, precisely at the time of the pandemic, which will have a lasting positive impact on improving the competitiveness of the Serbian economy.

Moderators of the panels were Dušan Lalić, co-president, and Jelena Vukić Šuljagić, vice-president of the FIC Financial Services Committee. Participants of the first panel were Bojan Terzić, General Manager of the Department for Financial Consumer Protection of the National Bank of Serbia; Željko Radovanović, acting Director of the Administration for the Prevention of Money Laundering; Biljana Marić, Acting Assistant Director for the Development of Information Systems and Electronic Administration of the Office for IT and eGovernment; Marina Papadakis, Secretary General of the Association of Serbian Banks; Darko Vučetić, acting Assistant Director of the Sector for Development and Innovation of the Republic Geodetic Authority.

Nenad Petrović, Acting General Manager of the Payment System Department of the National Bank of Serbia; Ognjen Popović, Assistant Minister of the Department for Financial Systems of the Ministry of Finance; Branko Damjanović, Director of Legal, Personnel, and General Affairs of the Association of Serbian Insurers; Bojan Vračević, President of the Board of Directors of the Association of Leasing Companies in Serbia; and Prof. Miloš Živković, Ph.D., Full Professor of the Faculty of Law, University of Belgrade shared their expertize on the second panel.

The FIC consists of about 120 members who have invested about 37.5 billion euros and employ directly more than 110,000 citizens of Serbia. About 75% of the FIC member companies are companies from the EU. Corporate culture, highly ethical operations, and modern principles of corporate management of member companies make the FIC a reliable partner not only for the Government of the Republic of Serbia but also for domestic companies. Despite numerous challenges over time, the FIC’s key pillars have remained unchanged: independence, transparency, expertise, best international practices, and, above all, support for more intensive European integration.