MINSK, 4 September (BelTA) – A new strategy for the development of digital banking in Belarus will be adopted by the end of 2020, Head of the Central Office for the Payment System and Digital Technologies of the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus (NBRB) Tatiana Ruskevich told the Respublika newspaper, BelTA has learned.
“The strategy is being finalized. We intend to adopt it by the end of the year. The strategy will be aimed at further development of the country's payment market. Its also provides for another important innovation – a so-called citizen's base account,” Tatiana Ruskevich said.
A base account (it is a usual current account which also allows performance of some operations for free) will help set a sort of a base social standard for provision of free payment services in the country's banking system. “We will be able to introduce Belarusian payment instruments for an individual's current bank account with the basic terms of service. If someone wishes to use other payment instruments, they will be able to transfer money to an account that has access to such instruments,” she said.
The NBRB together with the government authorities are working on the decree on creating a base account. Plans are in place to introduce it by the end of next year.
In recent years, e-commerce, delivery services, and online stores have greatly developed, Tatiana Ruskevich noted. However, such online platforms have no legal opportunities for direct operations with money and have to use banking services. The future strategy will also allow for setting up platforms that will act as intermediaries in payment operations between clients and vendors and as guarantors of such transactions.
“It will become more convenient, if such platforms will be allowed to transfer money via their accounts, because online platforms will ensure the safety of such payments themselves. It will also be cheaper for both sides. This issue will be addressed thanks to the draft law on payment systems and services which is going through some final evaluations. We expect it to be submitted to the parliament this autumn and to be put into practice next year,” Tatiana Ruskevich added.
