The State Treasury has been a partner to public finances for more than 22 years. In her lecture, Jana Ďuricová outlined its milestones, today’s services, and planned projects. From the introduction of SEPA and IBAN to the payment gateway and the upcoming instant payments, the system is evolving along with the needs of the state and citizens.
How the state's central treasury works
Together with the Ministry of Finance and the Debt and Liquidity Management Agency, the State Treasury forms a system for centralizing public finances: it maintains accounts and processes payments similarly to banks, but with specific tasks. Every client expenditure with a budget in the budget information system undergoes an eligibility check before payment. A unique refinancing system transfers available funds daily for debt and liquidity management purposes through ARDAL; at the same time, the institution provides daily reports for key authorities and prepares cash-flow for the coming months, which earned recognition from the International Monetary Fund. The scale of activities is illustrated by managed resources of around 18–19 billion euros, approximately 66 million transactions per year and more than 760 million transactions over 20 years, so every fourth to fifth payment in Slovakia is tied to the State Treasury.
Payment gateway, clients, and what's next
The State Treasury’s payment gateway accepts Visa and Mastercard cards, the payment buttons of four banks, and the mobile wallets Apple Pay and Google Pay; recurring payments are also available and a payment link with a QR code will be added soon. The system is used, for example, by Všeobecná zdravotná poisťovňa, the Financial Administration has deployed it for selected taxes, and on-the-spot fines are paid via POS terminals, with cultural institutions, Sociálna poisťovňa and secondary schools (e.g., via EduPage) joining as well. The cashless payments segment has been growing steadily, and in some years volumes nearly doubled. Operation is possible thanks to robust integrations with budgetary and economic systems as well as banking infrastructures.
The next step is instant payments with 24/7/365 availability, which required substantial adjustments to systems and integrations. At the same time, the Client Zone is running, where clients log in with an electronic ID card and handle contractual documentation and applications without paper. Institutions can apply for support to integrate the payment gateway under current calls to improve services. Looking ahead, a unified solution for paying for state services is being prepared, with a unified design and a clear visualization of the payment.
