Sweden's Riksbank has launched a consultation on proposed preparedness regulations and general guidelines for companies of particular importance to the execution of payments, expanding the set of in-scope firms and specifying more concrete requirements for planning, preparation, training and exercises in peacetime crises and a state of heightened alert. The draft aims to ensure the public can make payments in crises and war. The proposal would continue to cover key payments and cash-chain actors and add financial firms providing the payment service “acquiring of transaction amounts” where annual acquired volumes exceed SEK 100 billion, which the Riksbank notes would currently bring three additional firms into scope. Requirements are developed particularly for heightened alert, including establishing a wartime organisation for payment operations that is staffed, trained and exercised, and producing documented plans covering (among other items) staffing, premises and reserve alternatives, information and IT, protection and security, critical external dependencies (including alternative routines for payment services and payment systems) and measures for potential evacuation. Firms must also factor total defence requirements into planning, including preparedness to handle at least three months of a Europe war scenario with severe societal consequences and to maintain payment operations for at least two weeks under very strained conditions primarily using own resources. Other elements include annual reviews of documentation, a multi-year training and exercise plan with annual exercises and evaluations, clarified expectations for participation in Riksbank-led coordination and information arrangements during disruptions, and a new information-provision duty to support possible decisions on general service duty in heightened alert. The draft also allows for exemptions in individual cases and would repeal the current framework. The regulations and general guidelines are proposed to enter into force on 1 January 2027, with the planning and preparation provisions applying to the newly captured acquiring firms from 1 July 2027.
Riksbank 2026-03-02
Sweden's Riksbank consults on new payment preparedness rules adding large card acquirers and requiring wartime organisations
Sweden's Riksbank has launched a consultation on proposed preparedness regulations for key payment firms, expanding to include financial firms with annual acquired volumes over SEK 100 billion. The draft requires firms to establish wartime payment operations, plan for crises, and maintain operations under strained conditions, with provisions for heightened alert scenarios. The proposal includes annual reviews, training plans, and a new information-provision duty, with possible exemptions and a repeal of the current framework.