Strengthening financial integration – CBBH signed a Letter of Intent for the TIPS Clone Project

The Governor of the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina (CBBH), Jasmina Selimović, Ph.D. and the Governor of the Banca d'Italia (the central bank of Italy), Mr. Fabio Panetta, signed the Letter of Intent for the TIPS Clone Project (TARGET Instant Payment Settlement) in Washington, D.C., which confirmed Bosnia and Herzegovina's commitment to modernisation of the domestic payment system and its inclusion into the modern European instant payment infrastructure.

This project is one of the key steps in the process of digital transformation of our country’s financial system and its adjustment to European standards.

The signing of the Letter of Intent for the TIPS Clone Project confirms the CBBH's strategic commitment to the payment system modernisation and full integration into the European financial area. This project will enable households and businesses to make faster, safer and more efficient payments, with a direct connection to Europe's infrastructure in real time.

The TIPS Clone Project is implemented in close cooperation with the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), its implementation representing a significant step in strengthening financial stability, increasing the banking sector competitiveness and improving digital services for customers in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Bank of Italy delivers an instant payment system, based on a replica of the TIPS service, which is a European real-time payment settlement platform, designed, created and operated by the Bank of Italy on behalf of the Eurosystem.

TIPS is a platform of the European Central Bank (ECB) that enables the performance of payments in real time – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, with funds becoming immediately available to the user.

By implementing the TIPS Clone solution, Bosnia and Herzegovina will establish a national platform that is fully interoperable with the European TIPS system, which opens the possibility of Bosnia and Herzegovina integrating into the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).

In addition to Governor Selimović, the Letter of Intent with the Governor of the Bank of Italy was also signed by the heads of the central/national banks of the region, which is an important step on the path to the Western Balkan countries integration into the European Union financial system.