Skopje, 15 October 2021 

The investments in digital security is one of the priorities in the forthcoming period for both the banking and the financial sector. This is due to the new habits that consumers acquired during the pandemic - more common use of the benefits the digital financial services provide. This was stated by the Governor of the National Bank, Anita Angelovska Bezhoska at the panel "Priorities for the financial services sector", within the Western Balkans Summit, which is being held in Skopje and organized by the British weekly "Economist".

- The pandemic has directed the consumers towards digital financial services. In the second quarter of the year, on an annual basis there is an increase of 30% in the number of electronically initiated credit transfers and 55% in the number of payments via mobile phones. This is a positive development, emphasizing as well the importance of investing in cyber security, as one of the top challenges the banking industry faces with, in terms of both the consumer protection and financial system stability maintenance. According to the International Monetary Fund data, the number of cyber attacks has tripled in the past decade, with the financial services sector being the most affected - emphasized Angelovska Bezhoska.

At the panel discussion, the Governor of the National Bank stressed that the banking sector was part of the solution in overcoming the effects of the corona crisis. The stability of the banking sector and its readiness to face the challenges posed by the crisis are primarily due to the good condition of this sector in the pre-pandemic period, as a result of a number of regulatory measures taken since the global financial crisis. Due to this, the banking sector managed to mop-up large part of the impact on the real sector, said Angelovska Bezhoska.

Also, the measures taken by the National Bank, such as monetary policy relaxation and regulatory flexibility to enable a debt moratorium, contributed to alleviate the effects of the crisis on the corporate sector and households. 

- During the corona crisis, credit support was solid and even accelerated, hovering around 6%, while interest rates continued to decrease, falling down to the historical bottom. Credit support has played an important role in maintaining many activities and households, which, in turn, is crucial for maintaining economic activity - said the Governor.

Angelovska Bezhoska stressed that in order to further strengthen the resilience of the banking system, in the forthcoming period, the National Bank together with the Ministry of Finance will continue to work on strengthening the regulatory framework and harmonization with EU regulations. For that purpose, the Law on Financial Stability, the Bank Resolution Law and the Banking Law were adopted.

The Minister of Finance, Fatmir Besimi, also participated in the panel discussion "Priorities for the Financial Services Sector".