This event inspired the key message delivered at the 3rd European high level panel discussion on banking “Lithuania in the Eurozone: New Challenges and Opportunities for Businesses and the Financial Sector”, which took place in Vilnius on 22 January.
This year’s panel discussion was dedicated to Lithuania’s accession to the Eurozone and the opening of new opportunities and new challenges. Introduction of the euro not only has changed the national currency but also the overall banking supervision mechanism, which directly or indirectly affects Lithuanian business.
The top speakers of the event were Mr Gediminas Šimkus, Director of the Economics and Financial Stability Service at the Bank of Lithuania, Mr Stasys Kropas, President of the Association of Lithuanian Banks. Nerijus Mačiulis, Swedbank chief economist presented an economic review of the Baltic region. Sweden experts, including Mr Uldis Cerps, Executive Director Banks, Swedish Finance Inspection, and Mr Gustaf Sjöberg, Member of the Swedish Government Financial Crisis Committee, and Mr Andreas Zettergren, Partner at Law Firm Mannheimer Swartling, shared their insights and experiences in the Scandinavian countries. Mr Vilius Bernatonis, Partner at Law Firm TGS Baltic, was the moderator of the event and made the closing remarks of the panel discussion.
Organisers of the panel discussion – the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in partnership with Law Firm TGS Baltic and support of the Swedish Embassy – were glad to welcome a former Prime Minister of Lithuania, business representatives, banking and finance experts, regulators and supervisors. Sharing the lessons learnt and know-how in the banking area formed the basis for discussions on new business opportunities and efficiency in adjusting activities to the changing financial markets framework.