Anita Angelovska-Bezoska: Workshop on fintech - opening remarks
Opening remarks by Ms Anita Angelovska-Bezoska, Governor of the National Bank of the
Republic of Macedonia, at the NBRM Workshop on Fintech, Skopje, 28 May 2018.
* * *
Dear Mr. Jay Tikam,
Dear colleagues,
It is my great pleasure to open the NBRM workshop on a topic that has been attracting a rising
interest by regulators, supervisors and central bankers, i.e. a workshop on fIntech organizations
that, by combining new business models and innovative technology, gradually change the shape
of the financial services segment. The main idea of this workshop is to become better
acquainted with this rather new but very important topic. It has been organized with the support of
the European Fund for Southeast Europe, for which we are thankful.
Although in continental Europe, fintech companies account for just a small share of the markets
for banking, payment services and asset management, still they are on the rise as they are
rapidly entering the markets and competing with banks. According to Ernst&Young's Fintech
Adoption Index, one-third of the consumers utilize at least two or more fintech services and they
are increasingly aware of FinTech as part of their day-to-day activities. The FinTech Adoption
Index for services offered by fintech organizations, divided into five broad categories - money
transfers and payment services, financial planning tools, savings and investments, borrowing
and insurance, indicates that money transfers and payment services are continuing to lead the
fintech charge with adoption standing at 50% in 2017 and 88% of consumers anticipating of
doing so in the future.
This rapid rise in fintech organizations has posed many dilemmas: What are the benefits that
fintechs bring to the society, on the one hand, and what are the risks that they create, on the
other? Is it the end of banking or are banks going to team up with the newcomers? One of the
main concerns in this regard is that while fintech companies increase financial inclusion,
facilitate the access to finance and lead to more competitive markets, they can also be
conducive to cutting costs and rising risks in the traditional banking segment.
Against this background, the FinTech topic has received an increasing attention in the central
banking community, including our central bank. We have been closely monitoring the fintech
developments, evaluating the benefits and risks that they bring and trying to strike a right balance
given the local context. An important step in this direction is the draft law on payments that is
expected to provide impulse for new companies with innovative, but safe financial services.
This workshop is conceived as a platform for getting better insight in the fintech developments,
exchanging opinions, sharing ideas with a view of drawing the outlines of our future FinTech
Strategy. In this light, I am delighted to invite Mr. Tikam to share with us part of his rich
experience and knowledge on this topic. Mr. Tikam is an experienced Executive Level Advisor
with 26 years commercial experience, having played multifaceted roles, with the last 22 years in
financial services. Having in mind Mr. Tikam's proficiency, I have no doubts that today we will
have fruitful discussions and valuable exchange of experiences to the benefit of all participants.
Mr. Tikam, thank you for your efforts in making this workshop happen. The floor is yours.