AFTER five years in existence, the Financial Market Authority (ÚFT) was abolished as of December 31, 2005. The National Bank of Slovakia (NBS) took over its powers from January 1, including the supervision of the insurance, pension, and capital markets in Slovakia.
"The goal was to unify and improve the supervision process and make it more efficient with regards to the growing interconnection among financial market players. The aim was also to remove some overlaps in the area of obligatory reporting," NBS spokesman Igor Barát told The Slovak Spectator.
Apart from its traditional supervision of the banking market, the NBS issues licenses, approvals, and other decisions for the financial market. All financial market applications and documents should now be sent to the NBS. Apart from that, the NBS has the power to issue binding edicts, which the ÚFT did not.
In line with the changes, the organisational structure of the central bank was also modified. From the beginning of this year, a Financial Market Supervision Division has been in operation at the NBS, consisting of departments for the supervision of the capital market, insurance and pension savings.
The government appointed three new members to the NBS bank board: Jozef Makúch, Slavomír Šťastný and Ľudovít Ódor. The first two are from the ÚFT, the third from the Finance Ministry.
Compiled by Marta Ďurianová
