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Document 02025D0222-20250611
Decision (EU) 2025/222 of the European Central Bank of 27 January 2025 on access by non-bank payment service providers to Eurosystem central bank operated payment systems and central bank accounts (ECB/2025/2)
Consolidated text: Decision (EU) 2025/222 of the European Central Bank of 27 January 2025 on access by non-bank payment service providers to Eurosystem central bank operated payment systems and central bank accounts (ECB/2025/2)
Decision (EU) 2025/222 of the European Central Bank of 27 January 2025 on access by non-bank payment service providers to Eurosystem central bank operated payment systems and central bank accounts (ECB/2025/2)
02025D0222 — EN — 11.06.2025 — 001.001
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DECISION (EU) 2025/222 OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK of 27 January 2025 (OJ L 222 6.2.2025, p. 1) |
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DECISION (EU) 2025/1148 OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK of 2 June 2025 |
L 1148 |
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10.6.2025 |
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DECISION (EU) 2025/222 OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK
of 27 January 2025
on access by non-bank payment service providers to Eurosystem central bank operated payment systems and central bank accounts (ECB/2025/2)
Article 1
Definitions
For the purposes of this Decision, the following definitions apply:
‘Eurosystem central bank’ means the European Central Bank or a national central bank of a Member State whose currency is the euro;
‘central bank operated payment system’ means a payment system operated by a Eurosystem central bank which includes a TARGET component system;
‘non-bank payment service provider’ or ‘NB-PSP’ means any of the following:
a payment institution as defined in Article 4, point (4), of Directive (EU) 2015/2366 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 1 ), with the exception of those benefitting from an exemption pursuant to Article 2(5), or Articles 32 or 33 of that Directive;
an electronic money institution as defined in Article 2, point (1), of Directive 2009/110/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 2 ), with the exception of a legal person benefitting from a waiver under Article 9 of that Directive;
‘safeguarding account’ means a separate account in either a credit institution or, at the discretion of a Eurosystem central bank, in that central bank, that is opened by either:
a non-bank payment service provider to ensure the segregation of its clients’ funds from that non-bank payment service provider’s own funds, for the purposes of Article 10(1), point (a), of Directive (EU) 2015/2366;
a crypto-asset service provider to ensure the safeguarding of the ownership rights of its clients and preventing the use of its clients’ funds for its own account, for the purposes of Article 70 of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 3 );
‘crypto-asset service provider’ means a crypto-asset service provider as defined in Article 3(1), point (15), of Regulation (EU) 2023/1114;
‘cash transfer order’ means a cash transfer order as defined in Annex III, point (16) of Guideline (EU) 2022/912 (ECB/2022/8);
‘end of the business day’ means the cut-off time, as provided for in the rules of the relevant central bank operated payment system, for the settlement of cash transfer orders for that specific business day.
Article 2
Access to central bank operated payment systems
A Eurosystem central bank shall upon request provide access to its central bank operated payment systems for a non-bank payment service provider (NB-PSP) that complies with all of the following requirements:
the NB-PSP (or a third party carrying out such tasks for whose actions and omissions the NB-PSP remains solely liable) installs, manages, operates, monitors and ensures the security of the necessary IT infrastructure to connect to the central bank operated payment system and is able to submit cash transfer orders to the central bank operated payment system;
the NB-PSP provides any supporting information the relevant central bank reasonably deems necessary to decide on an application to obtain access to the central bank operated payment system;
the NB-PSP implements adequate security controls to protect its systems from unauthorised access and use, including in relation to cyber resilience and information security;
the NB-PSP submits to the relevant central bank either a statement issued by the relevant national competent authority or a statement duly signed as approved by the competent management body of the NB-PSP, in both cases confirming compliance by the NB-PSP with: (i) the conditions for requesting participation in designated payment systems, as set out in the relevant national law provisions implementing Article 35a(1) of Directive 2015/2366; and (ii) with the procedures set out in the relevant national law provisions implementing Article 35a(2) of Directive 2015/2366.
For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in this paragraph shall exempt NB-PSPs from compliance with any requirements, including specific application procedures, applicable to them pursuant to Guideline (EU) 2022/912 (ECB/2022/8).
Article 3
Accounts in central bank operated payment systems and non-offering of safeguarding accounts
Article 4
Maximum holding amounts
The funds referred to in paragraph 1 shall include funds held at the end of the business day by an NB-PSP in any of the following accounts in TARGET:
Main Cash Account (MCA) as referred to in Annex I, Part II, to Guideline (EU) 2022/912 (ECB/2022/8);
RTGS Dedicated Cash Account (RTGS DCA) as referred to in Annex I, Part III, to Guideline (EU) 2022/912 (ECB/2022/8);
TARGET instant payment settlement (TIPS) dedicated cash accounts (TIPS DCA) as referred to in Annex I, Part V, to Guideline (EU) 2022/912 (ECB/2022/8).
The maximum holding amount referred to in paragraph 1 shall be calculated as follows:
Where the NB-PSP has been in operation for a period of 12 months prior to its application for access to a central bank operated payment system, the maximum holding amount shall be twice the peak value of the outgoing cash transfer orders including, where relevant, ancillary system transfer orders but excluding liquidity transfers of the NB-PSP on any business day during the previous 12-calendar-month period. The NB-PSP shall include the detailed calculation of such maximum holding amount in its application to the relevant Eurosystem central bank to participate in the central bank operated payment system.
Where the NB-PSP has not been in operation for a period of 12 months prior to its application for access to a central bank operated payment system, the maximum holding amount shall be twice the NB-PSP’s expected total peak value of the outgoing cash transfer orders including, where relevant, ancillary system transfer orders but excluding liquidity transfers. The NB-PSP shall include its detailed calculation of the proposed maximum holding amount in its application to participate in the central bank operated payment system.
In the 12-month period following the opening of the first active account in the central bank operated payment system, the relevant Eurosystem central bank shall recalculate the maximum holding amount for each NB-PSP each month during the first quarter, and thereafter, each quarter. Such recalculated maximum holding amount shall apply from the next business day after recalculation is notified to each NB-PSP by the relevant Eurosystem central bank and until the next recalculation.
After the first 12-month period following the opening of the first active account in the central bank operated payment system, the relevant Eurosystem central bank shall recalculate the maximum holding amount once each year. The recalculation shall be based on the NB-PSP’s actual total peak value of all outgoing cash transfer orders including, where relevant, ancillary system transfer orders but excluding liquidity transfers during the previous 12-month period in the relevant central bank operated payment system and information provided to the relevant Eurosystem central bank in accordance with points (a) and (b).
In exceptional circumstances, the relevant Eurosystem central bank may, at its discretion, recalculate the maximum holding amount on an ad-hoc basis, in the event of a significant change in the settlement values of an NB-PSP that is imminent or has already occurred and that might cause non-compliance with the relevant maximum holding amount. Any such recalculation shall be made in accordance with point (b).
Article 5
Non-compliance with maximum holding amount limit or requirements for access to central bank operated payment systems
For the purpose of this paragraph, each of the following shall be deemed, among others, to be an event of material non-compliance: (a) systematic or repeated breach of the relevant maximum holding amount limit, including but not limited to breach involving a significant amount in excess of the relevant maximum holding amount limit; and (b) failure to reduce the amount held on the relevant accounts to below the maximum holding amount by the end of the business day after the business day on which the funds are received.
Article 6
Amendment of terms and conditions of central bank operated payment systems
The Eurosystem central banks shall amend the terms and conditions of all central bank operated payment systems operated by them to include the requirements set out in Articles 2 to 5 where relevant.
Article 7
Entry into force
( 1 ) Directive (EU) 2015/2366 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015 on payment services in the internal market, amending Directives 2002/65/EC, 2009/110/EC and 2013/36/EU and Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010, and repealing Directive 2007/64/EC (OJ L 337, 23.12.2015, p. 35).
( 2 ) Directive 2009/110/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2009 on the taking up, pursuit and prudential supervision of the business of electronic money institutions amending Directives 2005/60/EC and 2006/48/EC and repealing Directive 2000/46/EC (OJ L 267, 10.10.2009, p. 7)
( 3 ) Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2023 on markets in crypto-assets, and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 1095/2010 and Directives 2013/36/EU and (EU) 2019/1937 (OJ L 150, 9.6.2023, p. 40).
( 4 ) Decision (EU) 2024/1209 of the European Central Bank of 16 April 2024 on the remuneration of non-monetary policy deposits held with national central banks and the European Central Bank (ECB/2024/11) (OJ L, 2024/1209, 3.5.2024, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/2024/1209/oj).