Moldova's National Commission for Financial Markets adopted a package of decisions covering consumer protection and capital markets, including approving detailed secondary rules for the merger and dissolution of voluntary pension funds and taking enforcement action against non-bank lender OCN “ZOOM CREDIT” SRL for consumer credit contract breaches. The new regulation sets out pre-approval procedures for mergers and dissolutions, detailed process stages from initiation through transfer of assets and liabilities, and participant disclosure and consent requirements, including a right to refuse and request transfer to another fund. A merger will require at least half of participants to agree, or the employer’s agreement in the case of occupational funds, and dissolutions will be monitored through reporting and assessments, with the option for the regulator to appoint an external liquidator in case of irregularities. Following a consumer complaint, the Commission identified missing mandatory disclosures and non-compliant precontractual documentation, an increased early-repayment fee, incorrect application of the interest rate, abusive clauses on hidden fees and disproportionate penalties, and unfair commercial practices including false presentation of the annual percentage rate and incomplete cost disclosure, and prescribed interest recalculation and refunds. The pension fund regulation will enter into force on publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Moldova, and the Commission will file a court action seeking a finding that the abusive clauses are null. The Commission also registered the results of Moldova-Agroindbank JSC’s third bond issue under its offer programme (MDL 144.2m, 7,210 registered class VII bonds, three-year term, floating rate linked to the banking sector’s weighted-average rate on new MDL deposits of 6–12 months plus a fixed 1.5% margin paid monthly) and SCHUH BECHER JSC’s additional share issue (MDL 580,000), taking its share capital to MDL 600,000.
National Commission for Financial Markets 2025-07-10
Moldova's National Commission for Financial Markets approves voluntary pension fund merger and dissolution rules and orders Zoom Credit to refund unlawfully collected amounts
Moldova's National Commission for Financial Markets adopted decisions on consumer protection and capital markets, including rules for pension fund mergers and dissolutions and enforcement against OCN “ZOOM CREDIT” SRL for consumer credit breaches. The regulation outlines pre-approval procedures, participant consent requirements, and monitoring of dissolutions, with provisions for appointing an external liquidator if needed. Additionally, the Commission registered Moldova-Agroindbank JSC’s bond issue and SCHUH BECHER JSC’s share capital increase.