The procedure for appointing members of the governing bodies of the National Bank of Moldova (NBM) will be modified. A draft law on this matter was adopted in the first reading by 54 MPs.

The document was prepared by the National Bank under the auspices of the International Monetary Fund and promoted by the Ministry of Finance. The proposed regulations aim to strengthen guarantees for the independent exercise of the responsibilities of NBM’s governing bodies. Specifically, the legislative changes address the composition of governing bodies, the procedure for appointment and dismissal of members, qualifications, mandate duration, and their duties.

According to the draft, when appointing members of the governing bodies, consultation will be required with the Speaker of Parliament, the Governor of the NBM, or the Committee for Economy, Budget, and Finance, depending on the position. An opinion will be issued confirming whether the candidate meets the conditions, and it will be heard in a plenary session before the voting procedure.

In addition, in the case of dismissal of an Executive Committee member, the authors propose introducing the right to be heard.

The draft also proposes excluding from the Supervisory Board of the NBM one member who is also part of the Executive Committee — namely, the Deputy Governor. On the other hand, the number of non-staff members of the Supervisory Board will increase from 4 to 5. Another proposal refers to reducing the mandates of Supervisory Board members who are not part of the Executive Committee from 7 to 5 years.

Other legislative proposals concern the responsibilities and conduct of Supervisory Board meetings, as well as the regime of mandatory reserves.

Once finalized, the draft law amending the Law on the National Bank of Moldova will be submitted to Parliament for examination in the second reading.