Bosnia and Herzegovina was placed on the gray list of the Operational Group for Financial Activities, which operates through Moneyval. Besides Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina is the only European country on this list. The government did not eliminate the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing as requested by the Specialized Body of the Council of Europe responsible for countries that are not members of the International Mechanism in this area. Economists warn that the consequences for the population and the economy could be more significant than before, due to global trends and increased risks.
Vaskrsije Palačković is already thinking about how to overcome a possible problem in paying his father’s pension. He says that the irresponsibility of those who make decisions forced his father to say that at the age of 92, he cannot be sure that he will receive his honestly earned money.
“He earned his pension fairly in Germany. He can receive it all over the world. Then he can transfer it from Republika Srpska, from Bosnia and Herzegovina to a neighboring country, so there is a solution for that, but it should not have come to that,” says Palacković.
Rada Mihajlović trusts in children who are also abroad. He complains about the high bank commissions, which could be even higher now.
“When the children come, they bring them to me, and here, by God, there are two banks, they take commissions of 15 euros from my account, and the other one from hers 20 euros. And there you are, what do I know what will happen now,” she says.
Money transactions, which are usually completed within two days, could now take weeks. Banks can ask for additional documentation on the origin of the money and charge for it. Freelancers who work for foreign companies could be particularly affected.
“Some transactions will not be possible at all. Citizens may feel this when making some online purchases or using some services for which they paid a subscription,” explains economist Igor Gavran.
In addition to individual problems, due to stricter controls, slower and more expensive procedures, we can all be hit by higher interest rates on household credit. However, it will be the most difficult for businessmen. Some, their representatives estimate, could lose foreign partners, and in general they can expect different business conditions.
“It will be slower, transactions will be more difficult and they will be under scrutiny, and on the other hand, the credit rating of the state will be damaged by this. As soon as the credit rating is damaged, it means that we have more expensive borrowing. And this way we have very high interest rates at which the state borrows, and now it will be even more pronounced. Simply, this is something that we did not need at all,” says the president of the RS Chamber of Commerce, Goran Račić.
Placing Moneyval on the gray list will reduce Bosnia and Herzegovina’s chances of joining the European SEPA payment system, due to the absence of which we are already paying for more expensive services, such as withdrawing money from ATMs in the European Union.
