INTERNATIONAL: EBA Signs Memorandum of Cooperation with South Eastern European Supervisors

Monday October 26 2015

On 23rd October 2015, the European Banking Authority (EBA) signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with supervisory authorities in six South-Eastern European (SEE) countries, establishing a framework for cooperation and information exchange.

The agreement has been reached under the auspices of the Vienna Initiative – the public-private network established to safeguard the financial stability of emerging Europe – and reflects the systemic role of EU banking groups in the financial systems of the six SEE countries. The signatory supervisory authorities are from the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Srpska, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, the Republic of Serbia and Albania.

The non-binding agreement establishes a framework of cooperation and information exchange designed to strengthen banking regulation and supervision of banks operating in the EU and in the SEE countries. Within the framework, the EBA will update these authorities on the relevant developments of the single rule book and of progress in convergence of supervisory practices, thus facilitating their participation in the colleges of supervisors. The EBA will also open its regular training activities to them, while the signatory authorities agree to provide the EBA with regular and ad-hoc information on relevant developments in their banking systems, which will be used for risk analysis purposes.

Additionally, under the agreement, these authorities will aim to bring their own regulatory and supervisory standards and institutional arrangements into line with those in the EU, according to a timetable appropriate to the conditions in individual countries.

Click on the link above for further details.