Skopje, 13 December 2022

“Harmonization of the legal framework with the EU legislation in the field of monetary policy is in an advanced stage”, said the Vice Governor Emilija Nacevska in her speech at the Conference organized by the Secretariat for European Affairs, titled “On the European path: new reforms, new opportunities!”. Securing and maintaining the independence of the National Bank is vital to meet the role of the central bank as a guarantee of macroeconomic and financial stability, which is of particular importance to the EU in the assessment of this chapter, and also one of the basic prerequisites for attracting foreign investors. Monetary policy is and will be geared towards maintaining the medium-term price stability, strengthening and maintaining the independence and towards strengthening the capacities and meeting the standards for accession to the European System of Central Banks. 

The Vice Governor also referred to the achievements and harmonization that the National Bank has accomplished also in other areas within her mandate. “In the negotiations process, until the entry into the EU, the National Bank will work on the further harmonization of the regulation in several areas of its operation. Activities will be taken for further harmonization in the domain of the banking regulations in order to maintain a stable and sound, but also more competitive banking system, taking into account the appropriate consumer protection. Payment services will continue to be provided in a smooth and safe manner, but in a more competitive environment with new payment service providers in addition to banks and greater transparency for the type of services and the price of fees, in accordance with the European regulatory requirements and standards”.

The Vice Governor emphasized that the new Law on Financial Stability, adopted this year, takes measures for strengthening of the institutional framework for ensuring financial stability, whereby the central bank plays a leading role in the development and implementation of macro-prudential policy and financial stability.

In terms of payments and payment services, the Vice Governor underlined that the National Bank prepared several relevant bylaws for enforcement of the Law on Payment Services and Payment Systems, to a significant extent harmonized with the directives and regulations of the European Union from this area.

Regarding the issue of the expected effects of joining the EU internal market on the macroeconomic stability and the Macedonian economy, the Vice Governor stressed that not only the integration, but also the overall reform process of the country in order to meet the European standards, as well as in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe that already are part of the economic and / or monetary union, affects favorably the potential for growth of the economy and its stability. Moreover, she added that our conditions are harder, given the consecutive crises, which emphasizes even more the need for fast internal reforms for improving the competitive profile of the economy, increasing productivity and encouraging investments in sectors that will mean introducing new and innovative technologies that will increase the value added in the economy.