The Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo published remarks by Governor Ahmet Ismaili from the 16th International Conference on Payments and Market Infrastructures in Ohrid, focused on strengthening frameworks for Western Balkans integration into the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA). Ismaili outlined Kosovo’s work to modernise its payments system and align infrastructure and regulation with European standards. He said the preliminary SEPA membership application process was carried out in October 2024 and concluded in December 2024, with the full application to be submitted once the relevant laws are published and 20 implementing by-laws adopted by the central bank enter into force. On technical and market readiness, he noted that Kosovo’s banks and financial institutions already use IBAN and the ISO 20022 standard following the implementation of the real-time gross settlement (RTGS) system, and pointed to increased opportunities for new FinTech entrants, competition and innovation, alongside remaining challenges around operational compliance with PSD2 and PSD3 and strengthened supervisory capacity in anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT). Ismaili also placed SEPA integration within a broader payments transformation strategy covering legal harmonisation, infrastructure modernisation, open banking, instant payments and financial inclusion. He identified the TIPS Clone project, being developed with Banca d’Italia and the World Bank, as the technology pillar intended to enable domestic and cross-border instant payments, including participation by non-bank payment service providers that are in the planning and preparation phase for adapting their core systems.
Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo 2025-10-28
Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo governor links full SEPA application to publication of laws and entry into force of 20 by-laws
The Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo shared Governor Ahmet Ismaili's remarks from the 16th International Conference on Payments and Market Infrastructures, highlighting efforts to integrate the Western Balkans into SEPA. Kosovo is modernizing its payments system, aligning with European standards, and preparing for SEPA membership, with banks already using IBAN and ISO 20022 standards. The strategy includes legal harmonization, infrastructure modernization, and the TIPS Clone project for instant payments, while addressing challenges in PSD2/PSD3 compliance and AML/CFT supervision.