📅 November 18, 2020
Paysera continues to expand in the Balkans: launched in Albania, eyeing Serbia
The Lithuanian-founded electronic payment network, Paysera, which provides a current account, money transfers, and in-store payment gateway services, is expanding to Albania. Paysera Albania, the third company of the Paysera network in the Balkans, is opening in the capital city, Tirana.
"Albania is a candidate for EU membership. It is therefore undergoing the necessary reforms for integration and the economy is being modernised. There is definitely a niche for electronic payment businesses, as about 96% of daily payments in the country are currently made in cash. Other Balkan states – Serbia, Bosnia – also remain on the radar of our development. We see the whole region as a compressed spring: modernised economies that have become part of the EU's single market have the potential to shoot up in the future. When that time comes, we will be well known in these markets,” says Vytenis Morkūnas, CEO of Paysera LT.
V. Morkūnas suggests that the development of the Lithuanian fintech in the Balkans is a good message for Lithuanian businesses that trade with Balkan companies or are starting activities in this region.
"It is unusual for us in northern Europe to see that a business in the south-east of the same continent pays a commission fee of EUR 40 for a transfer in euro to a customer or supplier inside the EU. We are going to change that fundamentally. From now on, transfers in euro to SEPA banks will cost local businesses mere cents, and remittances in euro to non-SEPA countries – Serbia, Turkey – several euro," says V. Morkūnas.
Paysera Albania has already started recruiting and financial services will be offered by the fintech company to local residents and businesses once it is granted an e-money institution (EMI) licence by the Central Bank of Albania. The licence is expected to be obtained by the end of this year.
The Paysera network is expanding abroad on a joint-action basis through local partners. Activities abroad are coordinated through Paysera LTD, a company registered in the United Kingdom. Currently, the Paysera network includes companies in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Romania, Bulgaria, Kosovo, and Albania.
Paysera plans to expand to other Balkan states in the coming years as well and is also looking for partners in Turkey, South America, and other countries.
About Paysera
Paysera LT is a Lithuanian-born fintech company that provides current account and money transfer services around the world as an alternative to banks. The company is also a payment processor for 90% of Lithuanian e-shops that collect e-payments from buyers using the Paysera system. According to the Bank of Lithuania, Paysera LT is the first and largest electronic money institution (EMI) in Lithuania. Paysera network companies also operate in Latvia, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Kosovo, and Albania.