Banks, China, Financial Services, Investments, Lithuania

"Within the 16+1 format, Lithuania finally gets a more serious area, because until now we had only agriculture, while Romania, for example, took energy and Latvia took transport," told Mindaugas Reinikis.

"This shows that efforts by the Bank of Lithuania and the Finance Ministry of the past three years are bearing fruit and Lithuania is emerging on the world map as a fintech country," he said. 

China's International Business Settlement (IBS), which provides payment services between Europe and China, has already invested in Lithuania, but it may take time before other Chinese fintech companies follow suit, Reinikis said. 

"Certain formats and certain business platforms are created, and time will show how Lithuania and businesses will manage to make use of these opportunities," he said.

The decision to establish a fintech coordination center under the 16+1 format in Vilnius and to organize a high-level fintech conference in the Lithuanian capital in 2019 was made at last week's meeting of the heads of government of China and CEE countries in Bulgaria. 

Finance Minister Vilius Sapoka, who represented Lithuania in the meeting, says that the decision shows that Lithuania's efforts in fintech are gaining worldwide recognition.

"Internationally, this is another huge recognition of Lithuania as a fintech hub," told Sapoka.

"The 16+1 cooperation format is focused on the future, innovation and use of new technologies. Therefore, financial technologies will cover not only payments, but also insurance, and business and consumer finance issues. In other words, all financial market services," he said. 

According to the minister, the fintech coordination center will be responsible for best financial sector regulation and business practices, the use of artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things and blockchain in the financial sector, as well as risk management in ??consumer data protection, anti-money laundering, and cyber-security.

The 16+1 format was established in 2012 as China's initiative to boost cooperation with CEE countries in transport, investment, financial services, agriculture, culture, education, health care and other areas.