General information
Ombudsman
Protection of users of financial services is one of the key systems to preserve a healthy economy and living standards of citizens, and this need is even more emphasised because of the consequences of the global economic and financial crisis and its effects on the financial situation of the business entities and citizens. The economic development, financial stability and progressivity of the banking system, to a significant degree, rely on the activities and tasks conducted for protection of users.
By adoption of the Law amending the Law on the Banking Agency of the Federation of Bosnia and Herezegovina in 2012, the regulatory and supervisory function of the Banking Agency of the Federation of BiH have been expended, and the Institute of Ombudsman for the Banking System of Federation of BiH was established, to promote and protect the rights and interests of the natural persons as users of the financial services and amicable resolution of the contentious relations between the users and the banking system entities.
Establishment of the Institute of Ombudsman for the Banking System, as an autonomous unit is primarily motivated by the need to provide efficient and quality institutional protection of the rights of users of financial services provided by banks, microcredit organizations, leasing and factoring companies based on the rule of law principles.
The Ombudsman tasks have a number of features and characteristics, defined by the legal regulations:
• provide information to improve protection of users of financial services, as well as to increase the level of financial education, so as to improve the understanding and to make a better use of the financial products;
• informality of proceeding in order to improve the possibility for an average user of financial services to defend rights in the event of dispute, without good waste of money and time, nor the formalities and usual length of judicial proceedings;
• transparency in the relations between the users and the banking system entities raise to a higher level of a mutual trust, and the competition between the banking system entities becomes more dynamic in terms of the observance of the users’ requirements for more transparency in operations of the banking system entities.
Responsible financing and a higher level of the users’ confidence, make the financial system stable and healthy, which is ultimately, the goal of the efficient control and supervision.