Expression of Interest For Development Of Country-Specific Roadmaps For Invoice Trading Platforms

Expression of Interest are invited for Development of Country-Specific Roadmaps for Invoice Trading Platforms in the Western Balkans. Publication Date: 06/16/2025 12:00 AM EDT EOI Deadline: 06/30/2025 11:59 PM EDT The main objective of Asset Based Financing (ABF) in Western Balkans is to enable an increase in liquidity and available financing for MSMEs through the establishment of innovative ABF solutions, support for the asset-based lending ecosystem, and mitigation of the impact of late payments on business The Project objectives will be achieved through activities that will be addressing the gaps related to: legislation/regulations linked to factoring and late payments; providing a roadmap for technological infrastructure for the introduction of national invoice trading platforms; MSME knowledge and capacity to leverage ABF. The Project aims to: · Provide a deep dive regulatory and market analysis of the factoring market in the Western Balkans region. · Assess the Late Payments and Trade Credit in WBC. · Draft a model Code of Prompt Payments. · Assess the needs and development of the roadmaps for the introduction of national invoice trading e-platforms. The development of the factoring market in the Western Balkans remains constrained by several structural and institutional limitations. While most countries in the region have introduced basic legal frameworks for factoring, the adoption of supporting digital infrastructureparticularly e-invoicing systemsremains uneven. Serbia has made notable progress with the establishment of a mandatory electronic invoicing system (SEF), and several private and public platforms already operate in connection with SEF, facilitating invoice verification and receivables trading. In contrast, Albania is still in the early stages of developing a comprehensive e-invoicing environment, with limited integration between invoicing data and financial sector actors. The absence of standardized, real-time invoice data and limited interoperability hinders the scalability and risk assessment capabilities needed for robust factoring operations. This activity contributes to the broader objective of improving the enabling environment for ABF instruments. The aims of the activity are to: - Assess the technical, legal, and market readiness of each Western Balkan country for introducing a national invoice trading e-platform. - Identify the key barriers, risks, and infrastructure gaps, especially from a systems architecture and IT interoperability perspective. - Recommend the optimal approach for each country (e.g., national vs. regional platform, public-led vs. private-led solutions, integration with SEF or e-invoicing). - Develop roadmaps that define concrete steps, sequencing, and resource requirements for each jurisdiction. To achieve these objectives, the assignment will be structured around the following key tasks: Task 1: Baseline Assessment per Country Task 2: Market and User Needs Assessment Task 3: Identification of Key Gaps and Constraints Task 4: Strategic Options and Cost-Benefit Assessment Task 5: Roadmap Development per Country Tender Link : https://wbgeprocure-rfxnow.worldbank.org/rfxnow/public/advertisement/5455/view.html

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