Balkan Payment Forum 2026 — The Strategic Payments Hub of Southern Europe

About the event

Balkan Payment Forum is a high-level platform uniting the payments, fintech, and financial services ecosystem of the Balkans and Southern Europe with the global payments community.

The Forum brings together central banks, regulators and authorities, financial institutions, PSPs, innovators, investors, and technology providers from 20+ countries to address the region’s most important challenges and opportunities in digital payments.

The Balkans are entering a decisive phase: rapid digitalisation, EU-driven regulatory change, expanding cross-border commerce, and accelerating fintech innovation.

Balkan Payment Forum is the place to be — let’s shape the future of payments together!

200 +

delegates

25

speakers

15 +

regulators

20 +

countries

SPEAKERS OF THE FORUM

Ledia Bregu

MBA, CID Director of Payment Systems, Accounting and Finance Department at Bank of Albania

Jose M. Moreno de Barreda

Digital Finance & Fintech Sr. Advisor IFC - International Finance Corporation (Spain)

Michael Jennings

Head of Division, Eurosystem Market Infrastructures Development and Administration Banca d'Italia (Italy)

Mr. Dardan Fusha

Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo

Fatbardha Rino

Chief Executive Officer, Jet Bank (Albania)

Linda Shomo

Co-Founder of Balkan Fintech Association, Founder & CEO EasyPay (Albania)

Merima Mahmutovic

Senior Manager I PwC Strategy, Transformation & Technology I SEE (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Piotr Jan Pietrzak

New Markets Lead, European Payment Initiative (EPI)

Matthias Timm

Operations Officer at IFC - International Finance Corporation (Austria)

Panos Chalkias

C.E.O., Central, South & East Europe Transaction Systems (Hungary)

Yuliya Starokozheva

Deputy Chair of the Management Board, СІО of Raiffeisen Bank Ukraine

Kjeld Herreman

Founding Partner "Paylume" (Belgium)

Günce Önür

General Partner, Investor, Startup Wise Guys (Turkey\ Estonia)

Bernardo Weaver

CEO of Weaver Advisory (USA)

Bashkim Zeqiri

Founder and Chairman of the Board Pysera Kosovo | Founder of Paysera Macedonia | Head of Consulate and Honorary Counsul of Republic of Lithuania in Kosovo

Shkelzen Marku

Co-founder and CEO of YSB/Enterimpact Balkans

Deniz Deralla

Director of Supervision Department Bank of Albania

AGENDA

08.30 - 09.10

Registration & Welcome Coffee

09.15 - 09:35

Opening of the Forum

Welcome word by Organizer – Karolina Aleksandrova, Founder & CEO ProMoney, Government, Authorities, Guests and Partners

09.35 - 09:50

Keynote speech

Speaker Holta Zacaj, First Deputy Governor Bank of Albania

09.50 - 10:05

Keynote presentation

The TIPS Clone initiative to develop a regional IP system for the Western Balkans

Speaker Michael Jennings, Head of Division, Eurosystem Market Infrastructures Development and Administration Banca d'Italia (Italy)

10:05 - 10:50

Opening Panel Discussion:

Regulatory Outlook for the Balkan Region “Regulatory Priorities for Payments, Innovation and Financial Integrity”

Moderator: Matija Laco , Senior Economis World Bank (Belgium) *tbc

Guiding Questions:

  • What regulatory changes will shape payments in 2026–2027?
  • PSD3, Instant Payments, Open Finance — what impact on the Balkans?
  • SEPA and its tangible benefits 6 months from live
  • What are main challenges and opportunities for payment industry?
  • What incentives (or regulations) can accelerate cashless adoption?

Invited Experts:

  • Ledia Bregu, MBA, CID Director of Payment Systems, Accounting and Finance Department at Bank of Albania
  • Dardan Fusha, Deputy Governor for Banking Operations of Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovо

10:50 - 11:05

Keynote presentation

«The Future of Payments in Europe: Instant, Open, Cashless »

Speaker Kjeld Herreman, Founding Partner "Paylume" (Belgium)

11:05 - 11:35

Coffee Break & Networking

11:35 - 11:50

Keynote:

«Changing the way Europe pays»

Keynote Speaker: Piotr Jan Pietrzak, New Markets Lead, European Payment Initiative (EPI)

11:50 - 12:10

Keynote presentation

Keynote by Panos Chalkias, C.E.O., Central, South & East Europe Transaction Systems (Hungary)

12:10 - 12:50

Panel Discussion

«Digital Payments Transformation: What Will Drive Growth?»

Moderator: Matthias Timm, Operations Officer at IFC - International Finance Corporation (Austria)

Key discussion points:

  • Bank–fintech collaboration models
  • Mobile, instant payments & embedded finance
  • TIPS-like (clone TIPS) instant payment systems

Invited Expert Speakers:

  • Fatbardha Rino, Chief Executive Officer, Jet Bank (Albania)
  • Merima Mahmutovic, Senior Manager I PwC Strategy, Transformation & Technology I SEE (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
  • Linda Shomo, Co-Founder of Balkan Fintech Association, Founder & CEO EasyPay
  • Union Financiar Tirane | Unionnet - Western Union | UPay

12:45 - 13:00

Case Study:

«Digital Transformation of payments»

Keynote Speaker Yuliya Starokozheva, Deputy Chair of the Management Board, СІО of Raiffeisen Bank Ukraine

13:10 - 14:10

Networking lunch

14:10 - 14:50

Panel Discussion

«What’s up in payments?»

Guiding Questions:

  • Which payment products have the strongest growth potential?
  • How to ensure compliance and AML procedures balancing between regulations and costs?
  • What slows down cashless and instant payments?

Invited Expert Speakers:

  • Bashkim Zeqiri, Founder and Chairman of the Board Pysera Kosovo | Founder of Paysera Macedonia | Head of Consulate and Honorary Counsul of Republic of Lithuania in Kosovo
  • Natech Banking Solution

14:50 - 15:05

Keynote presentation

Building Trust: AML, Fraud Prevention and Financial Integrity in the Digital Age

15:05 - 15:45

Panel Discussion

Investment & Strategic Outlook «Why the Balkans Can Become a Fintech Growth Hub»

Moderator Shkelzen Marku, Co-founder and CEO of YSB/Enterimpact Balkans and Growpreneur Accelerator

Guiding Questions:

  • Expansion opportunities for potentinal investors and business
  • Biggest obstacles to building a regional fintech hub
  • Is “cashless 2030” a realistic goal for the region?

Invited Experts:

  • Deniz Deralla, Director of Supervision Department Bank of Albania, Member of the Supervisory Board Financial Supervision Authority
  • Jose M. Moreno de Barreda, Digital Finance & Fintech Sr. Advisor IFC - International Finance Corporation (Spain)
  • Bernardo Weaver, CEO of Weaver Advisory (USA)
  • Günce Önür, General Partner, Investor, Startup Wise Guys (Turkey\ Estonia)

15:45 - 16:45

Wrap up of the day, Networking coffee-break with glass of wine

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TERMS OF PARTICIPATION

Date

May 14, 2026
Working language - English

Location

Rogner Hotel Tirana 5*
Bulevardi Deshmoret e Kombit, Tirana, Albania

STANDARD TICKET

150 €
+ VAT /1 delegate

  • Participation in-person
  • Speakers presentations
  • Coffee-breaks
  • Networking opportunities
  • Photos of Forum
REGISTRATION

PARTNERS

MEDIA PARTNERS

TESTIMONIALS

Dome Scaffidi
Bank of England – Standard Advisory Panel Member, DS Payments Ltd UK & UAE CEO & Founder

I thank Karolina Aleksandrova and ProMoney for inviting me to such a great event as Baltic Payment Forum 2025. It was truly informative and very well organised. Thanks to the team for the fantastic coordination.

It was a pleasure to be a Panellist and Moderator at the Baltic Payment Forum's opening session and second section. Our interaction with the contributions from Central Bank representatives, Payment institution providers, FinTech association Representatives, Financial Institutions, and giant payment providers have made this event a significant milestone in the payment industry.

Alexander Movchan
President ACFE Baltic chapter

Participated as a speaker in a number of professional international conferences in the field of Internal Audit and Control, organized under the leadership of Karolina Aleksandrova, Founder ProMoney. The conferences always covered relevant topics, the agenda was well structured and well communicated in advance, and the technical support team was responsive and easy to deal with.

I have a very good impression of the conferences organized by Karolina, and I am happy to recommend her as a passionate and highly qualified specialist with extensive experience in organizing international conferences of any complexity at a highly professional a level.

Dorida Stambolla Marku
MBA, Head of Internal Audit Division, Raiffeisen Bank Albania; Member of the Board, IIA Albania

Audit Leadership Forum 2025 was an unforgettable experience. Rarely do insightful content, passionate speakers, and genuine professional connections come together so naturally.

It was an honor to speak before 200 international audit leaders, sharing insights on how to build and adapt an audit function during times of major technological and regulatory change.

The discussions were bold, the atmosphere collaborative, and the networking opportunities outstanding.

I’m truly grateful to ProMoney to have been part of such a vibrant and visionary community!