EUROPEAN COMMISSION – President of VZMD Presents Important Initiative for Bank Account Number Portability at Financial Services User Group Meeting
Last Thursday, a full-day meeting of the Financial Services User Group (FSUG) at the European Commission took place, attended also by the President of VZMD, Mr. Kristjan Verbič. Among other topics, the members discussed letters and guidelines from the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to the candidate for European Commissioner for Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union, Ms. Maria Luis Albuquerque, as well as to the candidate for European Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, and the Rule of Law, Mr. Michael McGrath. They also addressed proposals and comments related to the EU Regulation on Sustainability-Related Disclosures in the Financial Services Sector (SFDR), the Mortgage Credit Directive (MCD), the Payment Accounts Directive (PAD), and the Shareholder Rights Directive.
Mr. Verbič presented a domestic and international activities of VZMD in the areas of legislation, collective actions against telecommunication operators (VIDEO: https://youtu.be/gAhydt96hQI), developments concerning the protection of rights for shareholders and bondholders of Slovenian banks who were expropriated (bail-in) a decade ago (VIDEO: https://youtu.be/PC9BfVnR-0k), and successfully concluded legal proceedings in cases of minority shareholder squeeze-outs (VIDEO: https://youtu.be/QPUTMp8Gv_M), among other topics. He invited participants to the international investors' conferences scheduled for October and December in Milan and Wiesbaden near Frankfurt, which VZMD is also involved in organizing, as part of the annual meetings of the World Federation of Investors (WFI) and the European Federation of Investors and Financial Services Users (BETTER FINANCE).
During the meeting, the President of VZMD proposed that, similar to the portability of telephone numbers, which are tied to the user - either a natural or legal person - such portability should also be extended to bank account numbers at the EU level. He highlighted the cases of Slovenian consumers, businesses, and corporate users who, due to the concentration of the banking market and subsequent takeovers and mergers, have been forced to change their transaction account numbers multiple times in recent years, resulting in numerous additional tasks, costs, and significant complications in their business operations.
