The Balkans in SEPA: The first success

The Balkan news with enviable regularity, for the second year now, gives out the next stage, bringing residents closer to SEPA. To be honest, I was skeptical about the first announcements - individual banks are known for the possibility of opening non-resident accounts, for this they are often limited in correspondent relations. And here the gift of fate is direct access to the EU's internal payment system.

I was particularly struck by the news about Albania's connection to SEPA. If you have Albanian license plates on your car, every policeman in Europe will stop you. And if you have an Albanian bank in the payment, every bank is in the chain. Probably the most common scenario for closing an account in wise is that a resident of Montenegro decided to get an Albanian visa and paid for it with swift. Well, wise, such questions often arise from traditional European banks, which sometimes end with the closure of the account.

Alas, my skepticism was completely in vain. The first banks in Albania and Montenegro have already appeared in the SCT registry with a ready date of October 2025. The SEPA Instant Credit Transfer scheme (instant payments within 10 seconds) has not yet been connected, but they are also promised.

It is still unclear how this success will affect the opening and further operation of bank accounts for non-citizens. In Montenegro, even with a residence permit, it is problematic to open an account with a Russian passport, it is difficult for 2-3 banks to do this. In addition, there is a division into internal and external accounts. Even in case of complaints to the national bank with the requirement to have at least one account, the bank may limit itself to opening only an internal checking account.

We are waiting for October to test the first SEPA payments.

📈 Swift MT103-202 - перевод Swift.com 💶

The Balkans in SEPA: The first success

The Balkan news with enviable regularity, for the second year now, gives out the next stage, bringing residents closer to SEPA. To be honest, I was skeptical about the first announcements - individual banks are known for the possibility of opening non-resident accounts, for this they are often limited in correspondent relations. And here the gift of fate is direct access to the EU's internal payment system.

I was particularly struck by the news about Albania's connection to SEPA. If you have Albanian license plates on your car, every policeman in Europe will stop you. And if you have an Albanian bank in the payment, every bank is in the chain. Probably the most common scenario for closing an account in wise is that a resident of Montenegro decided to get an Albanian visa and paid for it with swift. Well, wise, such questions often arise from traditional European banks, which sometimes end with the closure of the account.

Alas, my skepticism was completely in vain. The first banks in Albania and Montenegro have already appeared in the SCT registry with a ready date of October 2025. The SEPA Instant Credit Transfer scheme (instant payments within 10 seconds) has not yet been connected, but they are also promised.

It is still unclear how this success will affect the opening and further operation of bank accounts for non-citizens. In Montenegro, even with a residence permit, it is problematic to open an account with a Russian passport, it is difficult for 2-3 banks to do this. In addition, there is a division into internal and external accounts. Even in case of complaints to the national bank with the requirement to have at least one account, the bank may limit itself to opening only an internal checking account.

We are waiting for October to test the first SEPA payments.

hottg.com/Swiftmt103/1545

767 viewsJun 9 at 10:03