COMMISSION DECISION

of 27 November 2015

amending Decision 2011/C 253/04 setting up a Payment Systems Market Expert Group, in order to extend its period of validity

(2021/C 52 I/01)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Whereas:

(1)

By Decision of 29 August 2011 (1) the Commission set up a Payment Systems Market Expert Group. That Decision is to apply until 31 December 2015. The expert group aims to provide a formal platform which allows for a structural exchange of views with market players on issues following from the implementation and interpretation of the Payment Services Directive (2007/64/EC) (2). The Payment Services Directive has recently been revised (3). In close connection to the revision of the Payment Services Directive, the Parliament and Council adopted on 29 April 2015 Regulation (EU) 2015/751 of the European Parliament and of the Council on interchange fees for card-based payment transactions (4). Furthermore, there is a strong pace of innovation in the payments market. Various initiatives across Europe are taken in order to encourage and drive the market towards more standardisation and innovation such as, among others, the Cards Stakeholders Group or the Euro Retail Payments Board. The challenges arising from these developments will continue the need for a formal forum for stakeholders which allows for a structural exchange of views on issues related to these developments. It is therefore appropriate that the work of the expert group denominated ‘Payment Systems Market Expert Group’ continue its work for another 5 years.

(2)	The Decision of 29 August 2011 should therefore be amended accordingly,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Sole Article

1. In Article 4(5) of Decision of 29 August 2011, the reference to ‘four years’ is replaced by ‘five years’.

2. Article 5(7) shall be replaced by the following:

‘The Commission shall publish all relevant documents on the activities carried out by the Group (such as agendas, minutes and participants' submissions) either by including it in the Register of Commission expert groups and other similar entities or via a link from this Register to a dedicated website where the information can be found. Exceptions to publication should be foreseen where disclosure of a document would undermine the protection of a public or private interest as defined in Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 1049/2001.’.

3. In Article 8 of Decision of 29 August 2011, the date ‘31 December 2015’ is replaced by the date ‘31 December 2020’.

Done at Brussels, 27 November 2015.

For the Commission

Jonathan HILL

Member of the Commission

(1) Commission Decision of 29 August 2011 setting up a Payment Systems Market Expert Group (OJ C 253, 30.8.2011, p. 3).

(2) Directive 2007/64/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 November 2007 on payment services in the internal market amending Directives 97/7/EC, 2002/65/EC, 2005/60/EC and 2006/48/EC and repealing Directive 97/5/EC (OJ L 319, 5.12.2007, p. 1).

(3) 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).

(4) OJ L 123, 19.5.2015, p. 1.