INTRODUCTION
- Ireland's strong technology and financial services sectors make Ireland a natural choice for establishing an electronic money institution ("E-Money Institution") to service EU/EEA customers.
- E-Money Institutions are regulated entities which are authorised to issue electronic money and provide payment services.
- Authorisations from the Central Bank of Ireland (the "CBI") as an E-Money Institution are granted under the European Communities (Electronic Money) Regulations 2011 ("E-Money Regulations") which transposed the Second Electronic Money Directive into Irish law.
- William Fry has acted for one-third of the E-Money Institutions which have been granted authorisation in Ireland to date on their applications for authorisation as an E-Money Institution.
TYPES OF E-MONEY INSTITUTION AUTHORISATION
- Two types of authorisations are available – E-Money Institutions and Small E-Money Institutions.
- E-Money Institutions have the ability to passport their services across the EU and their applications must comply with the full set of authorisation requirements set out in the E-Money Regulations.
- Small E-Money Institutions may be exempted from many (though not all) of the authorisation requirements but their authorisation will be limited as a result. They must not execute more than €3 million in monthly payment transactions and they are not able to passport their payment services outside of Ireland.
PROCESS AND TIMELINES
Stage | Timeline |
Initial preparation of application for authorisation | Up to 2-3 months may be required to prepare a sufficiently detailed application for submission to the CBI. |
Key Facts Document | t least 5 working days prior to the preapplication meeting, the applicant must return a Key Facts Document. This document should contain a summary overview of the applicant's proposed arrangements, including organisational and shareholder charts. |
Pre-application meeting between CBI and applicant | Draft application should be at an advanced stage when this meeting takes place |
Submission of completed application to CBI | CBI will acknowledge receipt within 3 working days. |
Key information check | Within a further 10 working days, the CBI assesses whether the application submission contains the key information and documentation required to progress to the assessment phase. |
Assessment phase | The CBI has committed to completing the assessment phase within 90 working days of receipt of the completed application. However, if the CBI seeks further information, this 90 day 'clock' is paused until such information is received by the CBI. |
Notification of assessment phase. | The CBI will notify the applicant of whether its assessment of the application is favourable or not. A further round of submissions may be required from the applicant. |
Notification of decision in respect of the application | The CBI's final decision in respect of the application is made (i.e. approval; approval subject to conditions; or refusal). |
MAIN FEATURES OF THE APPLICATION
- Fully completed and signed application form.
- Identification details of applicant.
- Identification details of applicant.
- Identification details of applicant.
- Identification details of applicant.
- Evidence of initial capital
- Measures to safeguard the funds of electronic money users.
- Governance arrangements and internal control mechanisms.
- Procedures for monitoring, handling and following up on security incidents and security-related customer complaints.
- Process for filing, monitoring, tracking and restricting access to sensitive payment data.
- Business continuity arrangements.
- The principles and definitions applicable to the collection of statistical data on performance, transactions and fraud.
- Security policy document.
- Internal control mechanisms to comply with obligations in relation to money laundering and terrorist financing.
- Identity of statutory auditors and audit firms.
- Shareholder information including group structure and required supporting documentation.
- Shareholder information including group structure and required supporting documentation.
- Completed Individual Questionnaires for all proposed holders of functions requiring prior CBI approval (e.g.
- directors and certain senior managers).
- Detailed policies and procedures.
- Minimum standards to safeguard client funds.
KEY ISSUES FOR THE APPLICANTS
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.