The Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo (CBK) briefed the media on the conclusions of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Article IV mission for Kosovo, alongside the Minister of Finance and the IMF mission chief. The briefing highlighted a stable banking sector and summarised ongoing regulatory and operational reforms across supervision, crisis management, payments and crypto-asset regulation. The Article IV review mission ran from 3 to 13 February 2026. Bank lending grew 14.7% year on year and deposits increased 13.0%, while non-performing loans stood at 2.1% supported by high provisioning, and the capital adequacy ratio reached 17.2% versus a 14.0% regulatory requirement, with LCR and NSFR remaining well above minimum thresholds. On reforms, the first draft of the Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process (SREP) manual has been finalised and tools developed for enhanced risk assessment and supervisory process automation, while a revised Emergency Liquidity Assistance framework is being finalised and a new deposit insurance law is expected to progress with World Bank support. In payments, CBK has aligned its regulatory framework with European Union legislation and submitted a pre-application to DG FISMA, with the Payment Services Law and the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing law to be reintroduced to parliament following a Constitutional Court decision, alongside development of an instant payments system (TIPS Clone). CBK also noted adoption of a regulation on licensing crypto-asset service providers, setting 1 March 2026 as the deadline for existing and prospective providers to apply and align with the framework.
Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo 2026-02-13
Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo presents IMF Article IV conclusions and sets 1 March 2026 crypto-asset provider licensing application deadline
The Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo, the International Monetary Fund, and the Minister of Finance reported on the IMF Article IV mission's findings, noting a stable banking sector and ongoing reforms in supervision, crisis management, payments, and crypto-asset regulation. Key developments include a finalized Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process manual, a revised Emergency Liquidity Assistance framework, alignment of payment regulations with EU standards, and a new regulation for crypto-asset service providers with a compliance deadline of 1 March 2026.