The director of the RS Banking Agency told the citizens to control the work of the banks themselves

Banja Luka, 13. February 2015 — Transparency International of Bosnia and Herzegovina (TI BiH) strongly condemns the statement of the director of the Banking Agency of the Republika Srpska, Slavica Injac, who told the citizens that they should take care of the banks’ operations. After the session of the RS National Assembly, at which the report of the RS Banking Agency was adopted, on the occasion of the closure of Bobar Bank and doubts about the stability of banks, but also the work of the Agency, Injac said: “He who has more funds should have more economic knowledge and monitor audit reports, bank websites and seek information from banks themselves. ”

In this way, the director of the RS Banking Agency not only made the existence of the supervisory institution of the banking system headed by her meaningless, but she practically told Bobar Bank’s clients that they were to blame for being damaged by its collapse. TI BiH reminds that the Law on the RS Banking Agency stipulates that the Agency was just established for the purpose of regulating and controlling the banking system. Also, the Statute of the Agency stipulates that the Agency informs the public by providing timely information, issuing official publications, holding press conferences and creating conditions for informing the public about the work of the Agency. TI BiH believes that it is impossible to create such conditions if the director of the RS Banking Agency tells the citizens to take care of the stability of banks by searching for information.

With this statement, Injac damaged the reputation of the Agency, for which the Law on the RS Banking Agency provides for the possibility of dismissal, and questioned the meaning of the regulatory body by telling citizens to control the work of banks. TI BiH notes that it is inadmissible for the director of the supervisory agency that controls the stability of the banking system to openly tell the users of financial services to take care of their banks’ operations by educating or searching for information.

Therefore, TI BiH demands that this scandalous statement be announced by the Agency’s Management Board and the Minister of Finance of the Republika Srpska, and that a procedure be initiated to determine the responsibility of the Agency and its management for the collapse of Bobar Bank, as well as to be held responsible for all abuses. until its liquidation. Otherwise, the damaged public trust in the work of the RS Banking Agency will be deepened, especially now that Injac has actually said that there is no need for the Agency to exist as a mediator between citizens and financial organizations.
Press rls – 13 2 2015