40 % of the Economy in Bulgaria is in the Shadow

“Obviously, the shadow economy is everywhere and its scale is enormous. It amounts great economic power, which turns into political influence, and possibly in recent years legislative and judicial influence too. Grey business harms us all and generates corruption that makes our governments weak and dependent. Honest business in Bulgaria is an ally of the current government and we encourage it in its attempts to shrink the informal sector.”  With these words Mr. Stamen Tassev, Executive Director of BBLF, opened the conference "Electronic Payments Against the Shadow Economy" organized by Visa Europe, its member banks and the Bulgarian Business Leaders Forum (BBLF) with the support of the American Chamber of Commerce in Bulgaria.

Close to a hundred businessmen and bankers gathered to discuss issues related to the shadow economy in Bulgaria. The shadow economy represents 37,7% of the GDP in the country accounting to 31,241 mln. BGN for the H1 of 2010, placing Bulgaria third in Europe in that category after Lithuania and Estonia. This is one of the findings from a detailed study commissioned by Visa Europe -"The Shadow Economy in Europe" that explores the structure and impact of the shadow economy and evaluates the role that electronic payments can play to reduce it.

To read more about the Conference, finding reports and the proposed measures for limiting the shadow economy, plese click here.