BRUSSELS – Serbia today opened chapter 9 – Financial services during the tenth EU-Serbia Accession meeting in Brussels.
The European Union delegation was led by George Ciamba, Minister Delegate for European Affairs of Romania, on behalf of the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The European Commission was represented by Johannes Hahn, Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations. The Serbian delegation was led by Jadranka Joksimović, Minister of European integration.
Regarding the opening of negotiations on Chapter 9 – Financial services, the Union has closely examined Serbia’s present state of preparations. On the understanding that Serbia has to continue to make progress in the alignment with and implementation of the acquis covered by this chapter, the EU noted that there are benchmarks that need to be met for its provisional closure.
In addition, the EU underlined that it would devote particular attention to monitoring all specific issues mentioned in its common position. Monitoring of progress in the alignment with and implementation of the acquis will continue throughout the negotiations. The Conference will have to return to this chapter at an appropriate moment.
As regards the benchmarks, the opened chapter may only be provisionally closed once it is agreed by the EU that the following benchmarks have been met:
- Serbia demonstrates an advanced level of alignment with the acquis in the field of banking and financial conglomerates, notably in relation to capital requirements, supervision of financial conglomerates, deposit protection and reorganisation and winding-up of credit institutions, and demonstrates that it will be ready to implement the acquis from the day of accession;
- Serbia demonstrates an advanced level of alignment with the acquis in the field of insurance and occupational pensions, notably as regards life insurance, reinsurance, insurance intermediation, motor vehicle liability insurance, Solvency II and Institutions for Occupational Retirement Provision Directive (IORPs), and demonstrates that it will be ready to implement the acquis from the day of accession;
- Serbia demonstrates an advanced level of alignment with the acquis in the field of financial market infrastructure, notably as regards settlement finality and financial collateral arrangements, and demonstrates that it will be ready to implement the acquis from the day of accession;
- Serbia demonstrates an advanced level of alignment with the acquis in the field of securities markets and investment services, notably as regards Markets in Financial Instruments directive (MiFID), prospectus, transparency and market abuse, and demonstrates that it will be ready to implement the acquis from the day of accession;
- Serbia demonstrates the robustness and independence of regulatory and supervisory institutions with an adequate administrative capacity for the implementation and enforcement of the acquis in the field of financial services.
With today’s Conference, 17 negotiation chapters have now been opened for negotiations out of a total of 35, of which 2 chapters have already been provisionally closed. Further Accession Conferences will be planned, as appropriate, in order to take the process forward in the second half of 2019.
The accession negotiations were launched in January 2014.