The National Bank of Serbia, in cooperation with the World Bank, made the National Strategy of the Republic of Serbia for Small Payments 2019 – 2024, was published on the NBS website on the last day of 2019.
It is a working document that deals with the everyday payments of low value between individuals, as well as between individuals and legal entities and state institutions.
The goal of the strategy is to double the current number of electronic payments per adult citizen by 2024, with the current 3.5 electronic payments per adult per month.
The average annual growth rate of electronic payments so far is about 20%, and this trend must continue with the same dynamics in order to reach the target (six electronic payments per adult by 2024), NBS estimates in the strategy.
The second objective is for 90% of adult citizens to have an account by 2024, which will be close to that of the EU. The starting point is 71% of adults of 2017 account holders. The document states that the state administration represents the largest single payment service user, that there is potential to increase the number of people who will open accounts.
Namely, during 2017 only 21% of pensions and 78% of all social benefits were paid into the accounts of beneficiaries in Serbia. Digitization should also cover other central and local government payments, such as public sector wages, social assistance, tax refunds and subsidies, the NBS estimates.
In September 2019, there were 26 licensed banks operating in the country. It is estimated that the banking infrastructure in Serbia is well developed. In 2018, there were 27.7 bank branches (per 100,000 adults), slightly above the average of the Europe and Central Asia regions.
In addition, seven representatives of electronic money institutions and 2.806 payment institution representatives operate in Serbia (September 2019).
At 47.7 ATMs (per 100,000 adults), Serbia ranks low. According to this data, Serbia ranks third in the region, after Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and is well below the average of the European and Central Asian regions.
“The strategy also aims to increase the number of places for daily payment transactions in our country, in an affordable and economical way, with the growth of financial inclusion and the development of the digital economy”, the document states.
The legal framework applicable to the payment system in Serbia is comprehensive and contemporary, the strategy states. In cooperation with banks and representatives of other payment service providers and payment system operators, NBS will constantly review the legal framework of the small payments market in Serbia and make necessary changes.
Banks, institutions licensed as electronic money issuers, payment institutions and the NBS will consider establishing bilateral and multilateral partnerships that could lead to interoperability between different types of payment accounts (bank accounts, payment institution accounts and electronic money institution accounts).
The ultimate goal would be that a natural or legal person who has a payment account with any provider can use it without any obstacles to transfer money to any other payer or payee across Serbia.
NBS will continue to work on facilitating online payments (e-commerce).
From December 2017, it is possible to use DinaCard (no matter which bank issued it) on the eGovernment portal. This way citizens can pay administrative fees for issuing documents, registration fees for motor vehicles and other services available on the e-Government portal.
Also, the changes to DinaCard’s business rules from the same year were aimed at removing all remaining barriers to accepting that card on other websites in Serbia. As for the so-called POS transaction (point of sale), it is expected that the new Law on Interbank Fees and Special Rules limiting the amounts of interbank fees for card payments will increase the number of access points, as card transaction costs for merchants are expected to decrease, and indicate the first information from the market obtained after the implementation of this law.
The NBS will ensure that payment service providers and payment system operators regularly review their pricing and their structure, and that they do not resort to any misuse in pricing.
Contracts governing the rights and obligations of service providers and users will also be clearly defined and respected, reports Nova Ekonomija.
