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Payment services
- Services enabling cash to be placed on a payment account as well as all the operations required for operating a payment account.
- Services enabling cash withdrawals from a payment account as well as all the operations required for operating a payment account.
- Execution of payment transactions, including transfers of funds on a payment account:
- direct debits
- credit transfers
- transactions through a payment card or a similar device
- Execution of payment transactions, where the funds are covered by a credit line for a payment service user.
- Issuing of payment instruments and/or acquiring of payment transactions.
- Money remittance.
- Payment initiation services
- Account information services
Comparison of payment service providers: Services
| Services/Type of PSPs | Bank | Specialised bank | Electronic money institution | Payment institution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payment services |  |
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| Money exchange | |
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| Issuance of electronic money | |
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- |
| Receiving/holding client funds without instructions for payment initiation (more (85.3 KB download icon)) | |
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|
- |
| Lending | (core services)* |
(core services)* |
(additional registration necessary)** |
(additional registration necessary)** |
| Receipt of deposits | (core services)* |
(core services)* |
- | - |
| Investment services, clearing, services related to securities emissions | |
- | - | - |
* A credit institution is an institution that provides two core services – accepts deposits or other repayable funds and grants credits. Every business model that does not fall under the traditional concept of a credit institution is evaluated case-by-case, thus an applicant should provide solid justification in order to be granted a banking licence.
** There is no common EU passporting regime for lending services, so any electronic money institution/payment institution wanting to provide loans has to comply with each countries’ national regulations. In terms of lending activities in the Lithuanian market, additional registration regime for consumer credit providers is necessary. Read more here.
Compare payment service providers: Main requirements
| Requirements/Type of PSPs | Bank | Specialised bank | Electronic money institution | Payment institution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital (own funds) | EUR 5,000,000 | EUR 1,000,000 | EUR 350,000 | From EUR 20,000 to EUR 125,000 and, in some cases, insurance requirement* |
| Licence fee | EUR 4,157 | Same as for banks | EUR 1,463 | EUR 898 |
| Supervision fee (max) |
0.0153% of assets per year |
Same as for banks | 0.585% of income related to payment service provision | 0.585% of income related to payment service provision |
| Resolution fee (max) | 0.0043% of assets per year | Same as for banks | N/A | N/A |
| Fee for deposit insurance funds | Up to 0.10% of covered deposits | Same as for banks | N/A | N/A |
| Managers and compulsory positions | CEO, management board, supervisory board**, internal audit officer, other key function holders | Same as for banks | CEO, management board** | CEO, management board** |
| Level of shareholder assessment | The Bank of Lithuania carries out assessment on the ultimate beneficiary of the applicant, so the information about it must be provided*** | |||
| Level of prudential requirements | High (exhaustive list of internal rules, specifications, etc. to be provided to obtain authorisation). Assessment is carried out in cooperation with the ECB | Same as for banks | Low (simplified template and documents to be provided to obtain authorisation) | Low (simplified template and documents to be provided to obtain authorisation) |
| Level of business conduct requirements | All financial market participants providing payment services are subject to the same EU and national requirements, with some exceptions (e.g. requirement to open a basic payment account under the Payment Account Directive is applicable only to credit institutions) | |||
| Assessment period | Up to 6 months (can be extended to 12 months) | Same as for banks | Up to 3 months (can be extended) | Up to 3 months (can be extended) |
| How to obtain a licence | Click here | Click here | Click here | |
| Licence is valid across the EU | ||||
*EUR 20,000 for money remittance; EUR 50,000 for payment transactions to the telecommunication, IT system or network operator; EUR 125,000 for other payment services; insurance requirement - for payment initiation services and account information services.
** The supervisory board (SB) and the management board (MB) must have at least 3 members. The CEO and the members of the MB may not be members of the SB. The CEO may be a member of the MB. More than half of members of the SB are not allowed to enter into an employment relationship with the company. Managers must be of good repute and possess the qualification and experience necessary to properly perform their duties.
*** The applicant must provide information and questionnaires filled in by persons holding, directly or indirectly, qualifying holdings in the applicant’s undertaking, i.e. a direct or indirect holding in an undertaking which represents 10 or more per cent of the capital or of the voting rights or which makes it possible to exercise a significant influence over the management of that undertaking.
Authorisation process
- Newcomer (pre-application) stage: pre-application meetings and consultations with Bank of Lithuania experts on whether their future plans are in line with legislative requirements, discussion on the submitted documents and their contents.
- Submission of an application: within 5 business days, the Bank of Lithuania checks whether all necessary documents have been submitted and, where no formal deficiencies are identified, accepts the application for consideration.
- Assessment of an application: within 1–2 months of the date of receipt of the application, the Bank of Lithuania may ask the applicant to submit additional information or documents. In such case, the time limit for assessment is extended.
- Decision regarding the issuance of a licence: after the assessment of the submitted documents, the Bank of Lithuania takes a decision regarding the issuance of a licence.
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