The European Central Bank adopted a decision establishing Eurosystem-wide, non-discriminatory and risk-based conditions for payment institutions and electronic money institutions to access Eurosystem central bank operated payment systems and related settlement accounts, including TARGET. The framework also bars Eurosystem central banks from offering or providing safeguarding accounts to non-bank payment service providers (NB-PSPs) and crypto-asset service providers, and introduces limits intended to ensure NB-PSP accounts are used only to meet settlement obligations. Access is conditional on the NB-PSP having and securing the IT set-up needed to connect and submit payment orders, providing information the central bank reasonably requires, implementing adequate cyber resilience and information security controls, and submitting a statement from the national competent authority or the NB-PSP’s management body confirming compliance with national provisions implementing Article 35a of Directive (EU) 2015/2366 and related procedures. Ongoing compliance must be confirmed annually, and national central banks may add requirements for their non-TARGET systems. End-of-day funds held by an NB-PSP in a given payment system must not exceed a “maximum holding amount” generally set at twice the peak outgoing value over the previous 12 months (or twice the expected peak for newer firms), with recalculations during the first year and at least annually thereafter; certain TARGET balances linked to RTGS ancillary system settlement procedure D and TIPS ancillary system settlement procedures are excluded from the cap but subject to monthly reporting of holdings and corresponding settlement obligations. Breaches of the cap trigger a 0.03% penalty on the excess plus EUR 1,000 per day, with potential termination and additional per-account penalties for material non-compliance. The decision enters into force 20 days after publication in the Official Journal of the European Union and will apply from 9 April 2025, while the access provisions for requests to join TARGET will apply from 16 June 2025. Eurosystem central banks must terminate, no later than 31 December 2025, access arrangements where NB-PSPs are registered as addressable BIC holders or reachable parties on central banks’ own TARGET accounts, and they must amend payment system terms and conditions to reflect the new requirements.
European Central Bank 2025-01-28
European Central Bank sets access criteria and balance limits for non-bank PSPs in Eurosystem payment systems
The European Central Bank has created a framework for payment and electronic money institutions to access Eurosystem central bank-operated payment systems under non-discriminatory, risk-based conditions. It prohibits safeguarding accounts for non-bank payment service providers (NB-PSPs) and crypto-asset service providers, and limits NB-PSP account usage for settlement obligations. Compliance requires IT connectivity, cyber resilience, adherence to Directive (EU) 2015/2366, with penalties for breaches and mandatory annual confirmations.