5.

The following Article 4a is inserted: ‘Article 4a Arrangements for cross-border payments effected through a service-providing NCB The provisions of this Article shall apply to the arrangements for cross-border payments effected or to be effected through a bilateral link. (a) Description of the connection When effecting a cross-border payment through a bilateral link: — the service-providing NCB shall be regarded as the receiving or sending NCB, as the case may be, as regards the obligations and liabilities relating to the processing of the cross-border payment via interlinking vis-à-vis either the sending or receiving NCB/ECB, — the connected NCB shall be regarded as the receiving NCB or the sending NCB, as the case may be, as regards the obligations and liabilities relating to the crediting/debiting of the receiving/sending participant’s RTGS account. (b) Opening and operation of an account for the connected NCB. 1. The service-providing NCB shall open an account in euro on its books for the connected NCB. 2. The service-providing NCB shall grant an unlimited and uncollateralised credit facility to the connected NCB. 3. To effect cross-border payments initiated by a participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system, the service-providing NCB shall debit the connected NCB’s account and credit an RTGS account of the service-providing NCB’s participant or credit the receiving NCB/ECB’s inter-NCB account held with the service-providing NCB. To effect cross-border payments to a participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system, the service-providing NCB shall debit the sending NCB/ECB’s inter-NCB account or debit an RTGS account of the service-providing NCB’s participant and credit the connected NCB’s account. (c) Obligations and liabilities of the service-providing NCB and the connected NCB 1. Verification (a) Both the connected NCB and the service-providing NCB shall be responsible for the accuracy and syntax of the data which they provide to each other, and they shall agree standards to be applied to such data. (b) On receipt of a payment order submitted by the connected NCB, the service-providing NCB shall check without delay all the details contained in the payment order which are necessary for its appropriate processing. If the service-providing NCB detects syntactical errors or other grounds for rejecting a payment order, it shall not process such a payment order and shall handle the data and the payment order in accordance with specific rules to be agreed between the service-providing NCB and the connected NCB. 2. Settlement (a) To effect a cross-border payment initiated by a participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system, the connected NCB shall debit its participant’s account and, in accordance with the terms and conditions agreed between the connected NCB and the service-providing NCB, submit a corresponding payment order to the service-providing NCB. (b) As soon as the service-providing NCB has checked the validity of the payment order submitted pursuant to Article 4a(c)(1)(b), the service-providing NCB shall without delay: (i) debit the connected NCB’s account; and (ii) send a positive acknowledgement to the connected NCB. (c) On debiting the connected NCB’s account, the service-providing NCB shall without delay credit the RTGS account of the participant in its national RTGS system or process the payment order via interlinking in accordance with Article 4. When the service-providing NCB receives a positive or negative acknowledgement from the receiving NCB/ECB it shall forward such an acknowledgement to the connected NCB. (d) To effect a cross-border payment, which has been initiated by a participant in the service-providing NCB’s RTGS system, to a participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system, the service-providing NCB shall credit the connected NCB’s account immediately on receipt of such a payment order. The connected NCB shall thereafter immediately credit the account of the participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system. (e) To effect a cross-border payment, which has been initiated by a participant in an RTGS system other than the service-providing NCB’s RTGS system, to a participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system, the service-providing NCB shall, on receipt of a payment order from the sending NCB/ECB: (i) carry out the procedures described in Article 4(d)(1) and 4(d)(2)(a); (ii) thereafter credit the connected NCB’s account and notify the connected NCB thereof; and (iii) thereafter send a positive acknowledgement to the sending NCB/ECB. On receipt of notification pursuant to point (ii), the connected NCB shall immediately credit the account of a participant in its RTGS system. (f) The service-providing NCB shall take all necessary measures, as agreed with the connected NCB, in order to ensure that all information and data necessary to credit the account of the participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system in any circumstances are made available to the connected NCB. (g) The hours of operation of the connected NCB’s RTGS system shall comply with the specifications laid down in Annex IV. 3. Finality The finality of cross-border payments processed through a bilateral link shall be determined in accordance with the rules laid down in Articles 4(c)(2) and 4(d)(2). 4. Transfer of responsibility for the execution of a payment order For cross-border payments initiated by a participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system, responsibility for the execution of a payment order shall pass from the connected NCB to the service-providing NCB at the moment the connected NCB’s account with the service-providing NCB is debited, and thereafter it shall pass to the receiving NCB/ECB in accordance with Article 4(e). For cross-border payments to a participant in the connected NCB’s RTGS system, responsibility for the execution of a payment order shall pass from the sending NCB to the service-providing NCB on receipt by the sending NCB/ECB of a positive acknowledgement as described in Article 4a(c)(2)(e)(iii). (d) Regime for errors The regime specified in Article 4(f) shall apply to connected NCBs. (e) Relation to the network service provider The connected NCB shall be connected or have an entry point to the network service provider. It shall be the connected NCB’s responsibility to claim compensation from the network service provider if the connected NCB suffers loss as a result of a breach of such rules and the connected NCB shall submit any claim directly to the network service provider. (f) Information to participants All NCBs shall inform participants in their RTGS systems that a positive acknowledgement issued by a service-providing NCB in relation to cross-border payments to participants in a connected NCB’s RTGS system certifies the crediting of the connected NCB’s account with the service-providing NCB but does not certify the crediting of a receiving participant’s account with the connected NCB. To the extent necessary, the NCBs shall amend their national RTGS rules accordingly.’