At present, 18 banks have met the standards required to be a member of the DIA. But all banks will need to meet these standards in the near future or face the risk of losing their banking license. Foreign banks A number of foreign banks have commenced operations in BH, particularly in the last two years.
Increased foreign competition has already been very good for the BH economy. It has given depositors more choice and it has forced the local banks to improve the range and quality of the services they provide in order to survive. Privatization of government owned banks Progress in bank privatization was initially very slow but accelerated markedly in 2002.