The new business cycle in the new political composition of the EU institutions and the EBF began with a focus on the following pillars of activity: banking supervision, digital transformation, the EBF’s initiative to stimulate the development of the capital markets (Markets4Europe) and communications. In this segment, the EBF continues its activities in the fields of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Ethical Conduct of Banks, Public Relations, and Financial Education (with another European Money Week in March 2020).
“At the summit, we had the opportunity to hear that financing growth and the economy is currently considered the most important mission of the banking sector in society”, says Vladimir Vasić, Secretary General of the Association of Serbian Banks, and one of the participants in the 49th Banking Summit. “We have received confirmation that in a changing environment, new opportunities for banks are opening up primarily in the digital fields focused on customer and regulatory requirements such as Open Data, FinTech and RegTech. The notion of Responsible Banking, which includes both sustainable financing and the notion of a circular economy in the financial world, is gaining increasing levels of attention. The banking sector considers its greatest challenges to be: the prevention of all types of financial fraud, terrorist financing and money laundering, as well as the degree of influence of regulations on day-to-day operations.“
The European Banking Summit was dominated by the consensus that the formation of the Banking Union, established immediately after the outbreak of the global economic crisis, was a very successful and complex undertaking on the basis of which any future crises could be more sustainably endured – in any case not at the expense of taxpayers.
“When it comes to meeting the economic requirements, additional sources of financing, such as alternative investment funds and the capital market, would be very important to the banks”, says Slađana Sredojević, PhD, Special Advisor for International Cooperation at the Association of Serbian Banks, who also attended the Summit in Brussels. “As far as Responsible Banking is concerned, there is a need to work on raising awareness of both employees and customers. In order to reduce the negative impact on the social environment, a social incentive, or some kind of subsidy, is necessary. Based on everything we have heard at the Banking Summit, we believe that the trends seen in the banking sector in Europe are similar to the state of affairs in the banking sector of Serbia, as we face the same challenges and business opportunities. The Association of Serbian Banks is very active in these processes, creating the best European practice and transferring it to the domestic banking environment.
According to the European Banking Federation, the number of credit institutions has decreased by 29% since 2008. At the same time, retail deposits and corporate deposits increased by 4%, reaching EUR 13 trillion. Loans to EU citizens and companies are also on the rise and now amount to EUR 13.8 trillion (2.3% more than a year earlier). EU statistics show that customers are increasingly communicating with banks through digital channels, and this trend is undoubtedly present in the Serbian banking sector, as well.
