Governor Radović Meets Erste Group Representatives
10/11/2025
Today, the CBCG Governor Irena Radović and her team met with Christoph Schöfböck, the Chair of the Management Board of Erste&Steiermärkische Bank d.d. (Erste Bank Croatia), who is also the Chair of the Supervisory Board of Erste Bank AD Podgorica, and Aleksa Lukić, the Chair of the Management Board of Erste Bank AD Podgorica.
During the meeting, they discussed the vision of the Erste Group’s development, focusing on plans and projects relating to Montenegro, as well as on the CBCG activities to adapt to European requirements faster, both in terms of regulatory and institutional development, with the final objective of creating benefits for citizens and the economy.
The Governor highlighted the adherence to the SEPA system, resulting in Montenegro’s integration into the European payment area, and pointed out the importance of the upcoming TIPS Clone project, i.e. the introduction of the national instant payment system.
“TIPS Clone is a project of systemic importance for Montenegro and the Western Balkans region, and its implementation is a crucial step towards the interoperability with the TIPS system of the European Central Bank and digital transformation of payment systems following EU standards,” the Governor said. She added that establishing the SEPA regime and TIPS Clone system will make Montenegro’s payment services market open and more competitive, expecting the arrival of new payment service providers and fintech companies. Therefore, the focus will be on modernising infrastructure, development of digital channels and adjusting business models to new conditions of interoperability and SEPA markets.
Mr. Schöfböck congratulated the CBCG on the achievements and expressed readiness of Erste Group to continue contributing to the development and modernisation of Montenegro’s financial system. He pointed to good performance indicators of Erste Bank in Montenegro and sound operations of the Group at the regional and European level.
“Erste Group follows trends and continually invests in digitisation and modernisation of processes, fully committed to developing long-term relations with clients and providing safe and quality services,” Schöfböck said.
Expressing mutual satisfaction with the current cooperation, the counterparties expressed readiness to continue partnership in pursuing joint objectives, especially in digital transformation, payment system modernisation, spreading financial inclusion and enhancing financial stability in Montenegro.