Moldova's National Commission for Financial Markets (CNPF) adopted a package of consumer-protection, pensions and capital-markets decisions from its 20 and 24 June meetings, including a finding that a floating-rate term deposit contract used by BC “COMERȚBANK” SA contains an abusive clause allowing unilateral interest-rate changes. The CNPF also approved a new regulation governing transfers of voluntary pension fund administration and the voluntary transfer of participants between pension funds. The clause under review allowed the bank to change the interest rate unilaterally by reference to the National Bank of Moldova refinancing rate, inflation, market evolution and “rules of fairness”, with 15 days’ notice provided only via the bank’s website and notices at its premises. The CNPF found the clause insufficiently clear and intelligible, including because it did not specify how the factors would be applied, any thresholds, or the frequency of rate reviews, and it considered the notification method inconsistent with good-faith standards and creating a contractual imbalance. The pension transfer regulation, developed under Law No. 198/2020 on voluntary pension funds, sets a framework for prior approval of transfers, participant information document requirements, and procedural steps for voluntary transfers. Separately, the CNPF authorised the conversion of “MDV-CONSTRUCT” from a joint-stock company to a limited liability company, removed the securities of 38 joint-stock companies from the issuers register following their deletion from the state register, deregistered 4,430 shares of “ÎNTREPRINDEREA DE REPARAȚIE ȘI DESERVIREA TEHNICII” SA following liquidation, and recorded “MICUL PRINȚ” SA’s share restructuring that increased nominal value from MDL 8 to MDL 16 and raised share capital by MDL 329,136 to MDL 658,272. For the COMERȚBANK contract term, the CNPF will refer the matter to the courts to seek a declaration of nullity of the clause.
National Commission for Financial Markets 2025-06-25
Moldova's National Commission for Financial Markets finds abusive interest-rate change clause at BC COMERȚBANK and issues pension fund transfer rules
Moldova's National Commission for Financial Markets (CNPF) identified an abusive clause in BC “COMERȚBANK” SA's floating-rate term deposit contract, allowing unilateral interest-rate changes, and will seek a court declaration of nullity. The CNPF also approved a regulation for voluntary pension fund transfers and authorised several corporate restructuring actions, including share deregistrations and capital adjustments.