With the aim of improving Cyprus’ image as an international financial center and showcasing the progress made in the banking sector as well as the wider economy, representatives of Cypriot banks traveled to Brussels. The trip resembled similar organized “roadshows” in the United States that began around a decade ago, in 2017, when Cyprus hired the law firm Pillsbury Winthrop to help improve the country’s reputation in the US regarding Cypriot banks. That effort was considered successful.
This time, on European soil, bankers highlighted the country’s reform path, strengthened compliance framework, and economic prospects, including growth rates, low unemployment, high employment, and steadily declining public debt, as well as the improved standing of Cypriot banks.
Banking representatives presented the major changes made in recent years in corporate governance, anti-money laundering rules, capital adequacy, bad loans, liquidity, cost-to-income ratios, new lending, and more. They also outlined the future direction of the “stronger than ever” Cypriot banking sector, its strategy through the national banking association, and how the industry is evolving alongside broader economic indicators.
