The Role of Foreign Bank in the Albanian Economic System

The aim of this paper is to analyze the role of foreign banks in the restructuring process that has characterized the Albanian banking system in transition from the planned economy to the market economy. The backward state in which the Albanian economy was left after the fall of the communist regime made necessary a plan of reforms of the legal and financial system. The new plan of rules in the subject of regulation and banking supervision fostered the opening of new banks and new branches which increased both the demand and the supply of credits to the private sector. On the assets and deposits side, at the present, the banking system of Albania is highly characterized by the presence of foreign banks. Assuming that, on the one hand, an easier access to credit allows small enterprises to develop and contribute to the economic growth of a country and, on the other hand, that only an efficient banking system lays the basis for an easier access to credit, in this paper we will concentrate mainly on the Albanian banking system with special attention to the role of foreign banks.