The Consequences of the Inflow of Capital from the Area

The first symbolic step towards opening up the Polish banking sector to foreign investment was the adoption of Article 85 of the Banking Law of 1982, which stipulated that a bank in the form of a joint stock company may also be established with the participation of foreign capital, with the proviso, however, that this share may not exceed 49% in the share capital of the bank being established. Although the above regulation was a kind of invitation to invest, the economic situation and political uncertainty in Poland until the late 1980s made such investments highly risky and economically unattractive. The profound transformation of the Polish banking system towards its adaptation to the needs and requirements of a market economy did not begin until a series of socio-economic changes were undertaken from 1989 onwards. The nature of the transformation of the banking system and the timetable for its implementation resulted, on the one hand, from the sovereign decision of the authorities of the Polish state to join the European Union and, on the other hand, from the obligations assumed with the signing of the Europe Agreement in1991. Also important for the shaping of the banking system in Poland were the recommendations of the so-called White Paper adopted at the Cannes Summit in 1995. It set out the timetable and methods of action to approximate the national legislation of the associated countries to EU law in various economic areas. For Poland, the period envisaged for the alignment of banking regulations with EU standards was set in the Association Agreement at 10 years, divided into two five-year sub-periods.