The Council of Ministers has approved and submitted to the Parliament the draft law “On the Albanian Development Bank”. The draft law approved by the government contains several important changes compared to the initial version, submitted for public consultation by the Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and Business Climate, in January.

The draft law revises one of the most controversial aspects of the initial proposal, the complete lack of supervision and control by the Bank of Albania, even though the Development Bank will be granted the right to collect public savings through the Albanian Post.

According to the initial proposal, the Development Bank was exempted from applying the provisions of the law regulating banks in the Republic of Albania. The proposal only concerned cooperation between the Development Bank and the Bank of Albania, including the opening and management of bank accounts and reporting activities, such as reports for statistical purposes or in the credit register, cooperation that would be regulated by a joint agreement between the two institutions.

Meanwhile, the variant proposed to the Parliament for approval stipulates that the activity of collecting savings products, through a separate entity of the Albanian Post, is supervised by the Bank of Albania. However, the separate entity of the Albanian Post will not be subject to licensing.

The draft law also stipulates that the Albanian Development Bank will report to the Bank of Albania for statistical purposes and the credit register. The Bank of Albania will also determine the methodology for supervising the activity of collecting savings products, as well as statistical reporting. BoA and the ADB will conclude an agreement on the manner of managing the accounts that the bank opens with it.

The approved version of the draft law also adds provisions on transparency and data publication obligations, which were missing in the initial version. The draft law stipulates that the Albanian Development Bank must ensure transparency in its activities, by regularly publishing data on its financial activity, performance, and impact on economic development.

The ADB shall periodically publish financial reports and statistics, by international accounting and financial reporting standards.

Information on savings products, their conditions, and interest rates shall be accessible to the public and shall be distributed through channels determined by the Albanian Development Bank, including its official website.

The Albanian Development Bank shall respect the principle of confidentiality of client data, ensuring their protection and treatment, by the legislation in force on the protection of personal data. The Supervisory Council of the Bank shall further establish rules and procedures for transparency and publication of data, to strengthen public credibility and accountability.

The approved draft law also further details the mechanisms through which the Development Bank will secure sources of financing.