Regulatory update on payment reporting obligations and on Central Bank accounts for Non-Bank PSPs and CASPs

The EU payments industry is undergoing significant regulatory changes aimed at increasing transparency, competition and financial stability. Two key recent developments highlight this shift: 

1. the publication of the European Banking Authority’s (“EBA”) final draft Implementing Technical Standards (“ITS”) in relation to the level of charges for credit transfers and shares of rejected transactions under Regulation (EU) No 260/2012 (“EBA/ITS/2025/02”), and
2. the issuance by the European Central Bank (“ECB”) of a decision on access by non-bank payment service providers (“Non-Bank PSPs”) to Eurosystem central bank operated payment systems and central bank accounts¹ (“ECB Decision”).

For further details on the ICTr Regulation, please refer to our newsflash on Bill of law amending the Payment Services Law and implementing the ICTr Regulation dated 2 December 2024 and New Regulation on Instant Credit Transfers – Key takeaways dated 4 June 2024.

I. EBA/ITS/2025/02  

This initiative emerges from the changes introduced by the ICTr Regulation², which mandates the EBA to create harmonised reporting templates, instructions and methodology for the purpose of reporting charges for credit transfers, payment accounts and shares of rejected transactions to national competent authorities (“NCAs”).

Article 15(3) of the SEPA Regulation introduced by the ICTr Regulation imposes on PSPs the obligation to report the following information to their NCAs every year: 

• the level of charges for credit transfers, instant credit transfers and payment accounts; and
• the share of rejections, separately for national and cross-border payment transactions, due to the application of targeted financial restrictive measures.

According to the amended Article 15(3) of the SEPA Regulation, the first report covering the period starting on 26 October 2022 until the end of the preceding calendar year of the report, should be submitted on 9 April 2025. Disagreeing with the timeline of that obligation, the EBA provides in the EBA/ITS/2025/02 that the original deadlines are unfeasible due to technical specifications. Therefore, the EBA suggests postponing the deadline set in the SEPA Regulation by 12 months so that the PSPs start reporting to their NCAs as from April 2026. This leaves the European Commission enough time to adopt the EBA/ITS/2025/02, and the EBA to develop the taxonomy, datapoint model and validation rules needed for implementing the reporting. Until the first reporting in April 2026, NCAs are expected to deprioritise the ad-hoc 2025 data collection and focus on harmonised 2026 reporting. Consequently, and as recommended by the EBA, NCAs should not take any enforcement actions in relation to PSPs that do not report in 2025.

It is important to note that the reporting should be done at the entity level. Where a PSP has branch(es) located in EU Member States other than the home Member State of the parent PSP, each branch should report to their host NCA, while the parent entity should report to its home NCA.  

Beyond the extension of the reporting deadline, the EBA Draft ITS also provides standardised reporting templates and instructions to enable PSPs to fulfil their core reporting requirements accordingly.

Finally, it is worth mentioning that the EBA/ITS/2025/02 is currently under consultation by the European Commission, with final adoption expected later this year.

II. ECB Decision

The ICTr Regulation introduced amendments to PSD2 by allowing Non-Bank PSPs, including payment institutions and electronic money institutions to access a central bank operated payment systems and central bank accounts. 

The ECB Decision sets conditions for access to central bank operated payment systems and sets limits on such access. Those conditions and limits shall be further reflected in the terms and conditions of agreements between the Eurosystem central banks and the Non-Bank PSPs.

The ECB Decision clarifies that it is however not the core function of central banks to act as substitutes for credit institutions in providing safeguarding services due to safety of the financial system considerations, such as risks of deposit outflows from credit institutions, leading to negative impact on the availability of liquidity. Similarly to the amended PSD2, MICA³ requires crypto-asset service providers to safeguard their clients’ funds with a credit institution or, where such an account is available, with a central bank at the discretion of the central banks. The ECB Decision provides that Eurosystem central banks shall not offer or provide safeguarding accounts to Non-Bank PSPs or to crypto-asset service providers.

Accordingly, the Non-Bank PSPs’ account in a Eurosystem central bank should only be used for the purpose of placing funds to meet settlement obligations. Moreover, the balance, or holdings, on such accounts should not exceed what is necessary to meet such obligations and therefore avoid that they are misused for safeguarding purposes. Consequently, the ECB sets a maximum holding amount limit (to be reflected in the terms and conditions of agreements).

It is important to note that failure to comply with conditions for access to central bank operated payment systems or with maximum holding amount limits, may result in pecuniary penalties imposed by the relevant central bank and/or termination of the concerned Non-Bank PSP’s participation in the central bank operated payment system.

III. Conclusion

As the regulatory landscape continues to evolve, PSPs and financial institutions must remain proactive in their approach to compliance and market positioning.

Given these regulatory developments, PSPs should assess their reporting capability and prepare for compliance once the requirements are finalised and applicable.

As regards the ECB Decision, Non-Bank PSPs should evaluate eligibility criteria and potential benefits of opening central bank accounts.