Governor of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina in visit to the Bank of Slovenia

Governor of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CBBH) Senad Softić was in official visit to the Bank of Slovenia (BSI) on 05 October 2021, and exchanged information, in conversation with the Governor of BSI, Boštjan Vasle, on the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on financial system, real economy and households.

Governors stressed that during the pandemic, the banking sectors of both countries preserved their stability, while liquidity and solvency at the system level were satisfactory. During the discussion on the taken measures, it was stressed that unconventional monetary policy measures during the pandemic gave results and mitigated negative effects of the crisis, with the current situation still requiring monetary policy to stay highly adjustable. The recovery is underway, but new waves of the pandemic could slow it down, Governors Softić and Vasle agreed.

A particular attention, during the official meeting, was paid to the issue of inflation in the euro area, which, at the annual level, additionally accelerated, mainly due to the further growth of energy prices. The CBBH estimates also indicate the strengthening of inflationary pressures in BH until the end of the year, on the basis of the data on the trends of food and oil prices, and domestic and foreign economic activities in the period ahead.

The trend of digitisation of finance was also one of the discussed issues, and it was stressed that there are many new technologies, but it is important to ensure that they contribute to the welfare of citizens and sustainable growth.

Mutual cooperation of the two central banks was estimated to be very successful, both at the bilateral and multilateral level, as central banks of both countries are members of the Governors' Club of Central Asia, Black Sea Region and Balkans Countries and Dutch-Belgian Constituency of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, where information is exchanged on ongoing economic and financial topics in the member countries. The Bank of Slovenia was also one of the Eurosystem banks included in the Technical Assistance Programme for the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina, financed from financial instruments for pre-accession assistance IPA, which Governor Softić particularly thanked for.

The visit of Governor Softić to the Bank of Slovenia was ended by the visit to the new Currency Museum of the Bank of Slovenia, in which it is presented, by audio – visual and interactive contents, education games and traditional museum exhibition, how the central bank functions, how it is connected with the Eurosystem and how its decisions impact the lives of individuals.