Parliament has approved the new chief for Bank of Albania after theft scandal that led to the arrest and sacking of Sejko’s predecessor
TIRANA, Feb. 5 – Parliament approved in the late hours of Thursday Gent Sejko as the new governor of the country’s central bank, replacing Ardian Fullani who was sacked last September after a Euro 5 million theft scandal.
Sejko, 45, is an experienced banker nominated by President Bujar Nishani and will head the country’s central bank for the next seven years with an option to be re-elected for a second term.
Speaking this week in a hearing with the parliamentary economy committee before he was elected in parliament later under a consensual vote, Sejko pledged to continue the Bank of Albania easier monetary policy in consultation with partner international financial institutions.
“I think that even though the key interest rate has been cut to a historic low, there is still space and it should be assessed in cooperation with the IMF whether other means could be employed such as the quantitative easing or the injection of liquidity into the market, which would be a new element on the Albanian market,” said Sejko.
The new governor hopes the European Central Bank’s massive quantitative easing boost for the eurozone will also have an impact on Albania’s commercial banks, the overwhelming majority of which are EU subsidiaries.
The ECB has announced it will inject at least Euro 1.1 trillion into the ailing eurozone economy until September 2016 as part of quantitative easing program which encourages borrowing and spending through low interest rates.
“We hope parent banks will increase interest on lending in Albania,” said Sejko.
Asked about the non-performing loans, which at around 25 percent are among the highest in the region Sejko suggested restructuring as the only option. Restructuring allows borrowers in financial difficulty to pay over a longer period usually with a lower installment amount.
“Banks should be open to customers and reach a deal in order to prevent a deadlock. Businesses which can recover should be given a priority,” said Bejko.
The governor also pledged to increase transparency over hidden fees banks charges to customers.
“The bank has a regulation on transparency and I will carefully monitor the application of the right fees so that there are not hidden or extra costs on customers,” he said.
In an earlier hearing, Sejko stressed the need to focus on management to prevent incidents like the recent theft which led to the dismissal of the former governor Ardian Fullani. “The biggest attention goes to the monetary policy and supervision but management is very important to prevent incidents in the treasury,” said Sejko.
Late last December, Sejko was unanimously approved as a member of the bank’s supervisory council, paving the way to his voting by Parliament as the new governor.
Two other candidates Natasha Ahmetaj and Tonin Kola were approved as members proposed by the majority to fill up the vacancies in the central bank’s supervisory council.
His candidacy by President Bujar Nishani was initially not enthusiastically received by the ruling majority who was seeking to nominate a high-profile international figure, including a foreign banker.
Sejko, a banker with 20 years of experience in the country’s banking system, recently served as the deputy director of the Albanian subsidiary of France’s Societe Generale.
President Nishani said he selected Sejko for his proper education, experience and moral integrity.
After the arrest of the central bank governor last September, the Bank of Albania’s supervisory council proposed to Parliament the dismissal of Fullani as Bank of Albania governor and replaced him with Elisabeta Gjoni, the first deputy governor, who was the acting governor until the election of a new governor.
Ardian Civici, a member of the BoA Supervisory Council also resigned leaving the decision-making body with five out of nine members, and risking its quorum.
Few days after the arrest of the country’s central bank governor over a Euro 5 million theft scandal, the Albanian Association of Banks representing 16 commercial banks operating in the country assured the Albanian banking system remains liquid, well-capitalized and sustainable.
