Serbian Fintech: The Week in Review (18–24 May 2026)
May 24, 2026
The Polako Finance weekly digest — what happened in Serbia's payment and banking infrastructure, and what it means for businesses operating in the local market.
Several significant developments hit the Serbian fintech space in the past seven days — worth knowing for anyone accepting payments in Serbia or handling cross-border transfers. The headlines: the operational launch of SEPA on 5 May, a new daily record for IPS payments, and the National Bank's updated decision on systemically important banks. Here's the breakdown.
SEPA — Operational Launch on 5 May
Starting 5 May 2026, Serbian banks operationally joined the SEPA scheme as indirect participants, working through correspondent or parent banks in the EU. Euro transfers between Serbia and SEPA-zone countries now settle in one business day instead of several, and fees drop substantially.
In practice. A salary or freelance payment from Germany or Austria reaches a Serbian account in a day, not a week. Sending money to family in the EU costs a couple of euros in fees instead of €15–30. EU banks no longer flag Serbian IBANs as "foreign."
For business, this means that settlements with European contractors and clients become fast and predictable in cost, and cash flow planning aligns with the new rules.
Sources: RTS, National Bank of Serbia.
IPS NBS Hits New Records
In April 2026, the IPS NBS instant payments system processed 11,336,918 transactions, averaging 377,897 per day. On 9 April, a new daily record was set: 577,585 payments totalling 7.99 billion dinars.
IPS is Serbia's instant payments rail: a customer scans a QR code at a checkout or on a utility bill, and money moves in seconds — no card needed, and without Visa/Mastercard-tier acquiring fees. The more individuals and businesses onboard, the less dependence there is on cash and plastic — and the lower the cost of accepting payments for merchants themselves.
Source: ips.nbs.rs.
National Bank Updates the List of Systemically Important Banks
On 11 May, the NBS Executive Board approved an updated list of systemically important Serbian banks. Banks on the list must hold an additional capital buffer of 1–2% of risk-weighted assets, depending on their level of significance. The decision applies from 30 June 2026.
A capital buffer is a "safety cushion" of the bank's own funds that cannot be put into circulation. The bigger and more systemic the bank, the larger the cushion. If something goes wrong, the bank absorbs losses from this reserve rather than from depositors. For clients and partners of major Serbian banks, this is straightforward good news: systemic stability goes up.
Source: Espreso.
eFaktura Law Extended Through End of 2026
The application period of the electronic invoicing law has been extended through the end of 2026. Retail trade remains outside the scope — except for sales to government institutions or via corporate cards. The obligation also does not extend to individuals without entrepreneur status. Retention periods: public sector — permanently; private sector — at least 10 years from the end of the year in which the invoice was issued.
The point: the tax authority sees every B2B and B2G transaction in real time. Paper invoices that used to "go missing" are gone — meaning VAT refunds become simpler and grey schemes get closed off.
Source: Nimi.
April Inflation: 3.3%
According to the NBS, annual inflation was 2.8% in March and accelerated to 3.3% in April. The increase is almost entirely explained by rising fuel prices on the back of Middle East tensions. The GDP growth forecast has been revised down by 0.5 percentage points.
For businesses, this is a signal: logistics and energy costs will press on margins more heavily in the coming months than was planned at the start of the year.
Source: Nova Ekonomija.
Quick Takeaways
- If you receive money from the EU — rebuild your financial models around the one-day SEPA cycle instead of 3–5 days for SWIFT.
- If you accept payments in Serbia — IPS QR on receipts and your website cuts fees dramatically compared to card payments (0.3–0.5% vs. 1.5–3%).
- If you operate B2B — make sure your accounting software works correctly with eFaktura through the end of 2026.
At Polako Finance, we integrate all of these tools — IPS, fiscal cash register, e-invoicing, and acquiring — into a single turnkey solution. If you'd like to walk through how this works in your specific case, get in touch.
This digest is prepared by the Polako Finance team. Stay updated: polako-finance.com
Tags: fintech, Serbia, SEPA, NBS, IPS, eFaktura, inflation, payments