SEPA-membership-payments – Albanian  Telegraphic  Agency. https://en.ata.gov.al News Agency Thu, 08 Aug 2024 20:27:19 +0000 en-US hourly 1 SEPA membership, Bank of Albania approves regulation on fund transfers https://en.ata.gov.al/2024/08/08/sepa-membership-bank-of-albania-approves-regulation-on-fund-transfers/ https://en.ata.gov.al/2024/08/08/sepa-membership-bank-of-albania-approves-regulation-on-fund-transfers/#respond Thu, 08 Aug 2024 20:27:19 +0000 https://en.ata.gov.al/?p=241337 TIRANA, Aug 8 /ATA/ The Supervisory Council of the Bank of Albania approved on Wednesday’s meeting the regulation “On information accompanying fund transfers”.

The approval of the regulation “On information accompanying fund transfers” comes in the followup to the Bank of Albania’s work to complete the regulatory framework and conditions for Albania’s membership in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).

This regulation aligns the requirements of EU Regulation 2023/1113 regarding fund transfers in our country.

According to the BoA, within the framework of participation in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), for the purposes of prevention, detection and investigation of money laundering and terrorist financing, the regulation determines the information on the payer and the beneficiary that will accompany the transfers of funds in euros, where at least one of the payment service providers involved in the transfer of funds is located in the Republic of Albania.

The regulation also sets out rules for internal policies, procedures and controls for payment service providers, with the aim of applying enforcement measures, regardless of the transaction involved or the currency used, as well as requirements regarding the obligation to store and protect data.

Albania’s membership in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) is expected to be decided within this year. SEPA membership is expected to enable international payments at lower costs and in faster time.

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]]> https://en.ata.gov.al/2024/08/08/sepa-membership-bank-of-albania-approves-regulation-on-fund-transfers/feed/ 0 SEPA membership, BoA: Movement of funds and payments with the EU, easier and less costly https://en.ata.gov.al/2024/04/30/sepa-membership-boa-movement-of-funds-and-payments-with-the-eu-easier-and-less-costly/ https://en.ata.gov.al/2024/04/30/sepa-membership-boa-movement-of-funds-and-payments-with-the-eu-easier-and-less-costly/#respond Tue, 30 Apr 2024 19:57:48 +0000 https://en.ata.gov.al/?p=233641 TIRANA, April 30 /ATA/ For the development of tourism, SEPA membership facilitates European tourists to pay quickly and at low costs, as if they were in Europe or in their country of origin. For investments, the movement of funds and payments between Albania and the countries of the European Union becomes easier and less expensive. Also, the creation of such a facility will increase the formalized sending of remittances from the countries of the European Union.
The Bank of Albania announced that one of the most important developments expected for the financial sector will be the country’s membership in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).
SEPA membership is expected to facilitate international payments at lower costs and in faster time.
With a high level of economic interaction with European Union countries — in areas such as trade exchanges in goods, income from labor and remittances and tourism — SEPA membership would make it much easier for Albanians and Europeans to do business as it simplifies cross-border payments between member countries as well as domestic payments.

Participation in SEPA enables the application of equal tariff principles, both for domestic and electronically processed cross-border payments in euros.

Currently, transfers and payments with EU countries and vice versa are conducted through correspondent banks, representing a costly and inefficient channel regarding transaction execution time, monitoring of completion, transparency of working conditions, and consumer protection, experts say.

For tourism development, SEPA membership facilitates European tourists to pay quickly and at low cost, as if they were in Europe or their home country. For investments, the movement of funds and payments between Albania and EU countries becomes easier and less costly. Also, such facilitation will increase the formalized sending of remittances from EU countries.

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