Mediterranean Bank Network participated in the Financial Services Euromed regional seminar held within the framework of the EU MEDA Programme.

The aim of the four-day seminar, which was held in Lisbon, Portugal, was to consolidate a network of expertise on financial services among the Euro-Mediterranean Partners. Those attending included MPs and officials and practitioners in the field of financial services, as well as representatives of the central banks.

Xavier Puig, Executive Board Member of the Mediterranean Bank Network and Director of International Business for Banco Sabadell, represented the Mediterranean Bank Network. He was invited to open and address the agenda item related to know-ledge and best practices in the banking industry.

The topics raised by MBN were related to banking cooperation between MEDA countries on financial services, outlining the common priorities of the Mediterranean Partners and proposing the next steps to be taken as a regional network. The comments and feedback received from the participants were highly positive to the extent that MBN was encouraged to follow up on its suggestions with a detailed report and prepare a paper on the matters discussed.

During the last month, members of the Mediterranean Bank Network also held their bilateral business meetings at Hellenic Bank in Cyprus. The aim of these meetings is to continually increase intra-network business and the sharing of

opinions and experiences.

MBN members include Bank of Valletta (Malta), Nova Ljubljanska Banka (Slovenia), Banque Internationale Arabe de Tunisie (Tunisia), Commercial International Bank, (Egypt) BancoSabadell (Spain), Hellenic Bank ( Cyprus), Banco Poplare (Italy), Israel Discount Bank and Bank of Jordan. Membership is limited to one bank per

country.