EN ECB -PUBLIC  
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK  
of 15 November  2021  
on the oversight of payment and securities settlement systems  
(CON/20 21/33) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 8 October 2021  the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from Lietuvos bankas  for an 
opinion on a draft resolution on  the Description of the Guidelines for the Oversight of Payment and 
Securities Settlement Systems  (hereinafter the ‘draft resolution’) . 
The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the 
Functioning of the European Union and the second, third, fifth and sixth indents of Article 2(1) of Council 
Decision 98/415/EC1, as the dr aft resolution relates to means of payment, Lietuvos bankas, payment and 
settlement systems, and rules applicable to financial institutions insofar as they  materially influence the 
stability of financial institutions and markets. In accordance with the fir st sentence of Article 17.5 of the 
Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion.  
 
1. Purpose of the draft resolution  
1.1 The draft resolution recasts the framework for the conduct of payment and securities settlement 
systems oversight by Lietuvos bankas, which was approved by the Board of Lietuvos bankas in 
2014 and entered into force on 1 January 2015.  
1.2 The draft resolution aims to align the existing framework  for the conduct of payment and securi ties 
settlement systems oversight with the relevant regulatory developments  introduced since 2015 , in 
particular the Union  legal acts  concerning the oversight of the payment and securities settlement 
systems (Regulation of the European Central Bank (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28)2 and 
Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council3), as well as  other 
documents  approved by the ECB  on the same subject matter4. In addition, t he draft resolution aims 
to introduce other amendments  which follow from  the experience gained by Lietuvos bankas when 
implementing the provisions  of the oversight framework . 
 
1  Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29  June 1998 on the consultation of the European Central Bank by national 
authorities regarding draft legislative provisions (OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42).  
2  Regulation of the European Central Bank (EU) No 795/2014 of 3 July 2014 on oversight requirements for 
systemically important payment systems (ECB/2014/28) (OJ L 217, 23.7.2014, p. 16) . 
3  Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on improving securities 
settlement in the European Union and on central securities depositories and amending Directives 98/26/EC and 
2014/65/EU and Regulation (EU) No 236/2012 (OJ L 257, 28.8.2014, p. 1) . 
4  See ECB/Eurosystem Revised Oversight Framework for Retail Payment Systems,  February 2016 ; ECB/Eurosystem 
Revised Assessment Methodology for Payment Systems , June 2018. Both these documents are a vailable on the 
ECB’s  website  at www.ecb.europa.eu .   
ECB -PUBLIC  
2 1.3 The draft resolution sets out measures  that Lietuvos bankas takes  in performing p ayment and 
securities settlement systems oversight  tasks, namely: the  registration,  assessment and monitoring 
of system s. The draft resolution also contains provisions as regards the collection and sharing of 
statistical data and information related to major security incidents impacting these systems with 
other authorities and the ECB . 
1.4 Under the draft resolution, the assessment of payment systems has been aligned with the Revised 
Oversight Framework for Retail Payment Systems and the Revised A ssessment Methodology for 
Payment Systems approved by the ECB, as well as with other ECB documents applicable to the 
oversight of payment systems.  
1.5 For the assessment of securities settlement systems , the draft resolution now refers, among other 
things,  to Regulation (EU) No 909/2014.  For the purposes of this Regulation, Lietuvos bankas is 
the designated competent authority5, responsible for performing the duties under this  Regulation 
with regard to the authorisation and supervision of central securities depositories (CSDs) 
established in Lithuania. Furthermore, Lietuvos bankas and the Eurosystem qualify as relevant 
authorities6 for CSDs under  this Regulation.  
1.6 The draft resolution contains an obligation for systemically important payment system operators to 
inform Lietuvos bankas about major incidents occurring in the system. To this end, the draft 
resolution  describes the procedure for the payment system operator to inform Lietuvos bankas of 
a major  incident and sets out criteria identifying major incidents. Likewise, under the draft resolution 
securities settlement system operators must inform Lietuvos bankas of an incident occurring in 
their system s. 
1.7 Furthermore, the draft resolution details the information to be provided by the payment system 
operator before the implementation of major changes. A major system change is defined as a 
change in the functionality of a system that significantly alters the settings of the system or adds 
new core business functions.  
1.8 Finally, the draft resolution  provides that as part of the monitoring of systems, Lietuvos bankas 
arranges bilateral regular and/or thematic meetings with system operators for the exchange of  
information on ongoing or planned sys tem changes, system oversight plans, potential regulatory 
changes, and other information related to system operation and oversight.  
 
2. General o bservations  
2.1 The ECB welcomes the draft resolution, which aims to (1) achieve alignment with the existing 
Eurosystem oversight framework , Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28)7 on oversight 
requirements for systemically important payment systems and policies for the conduct of oversight 
of payment and securities settlement systems , as well as to ensure consistency with Regulation 
(EU) No  909/2014;  (2) strengthen the operational and cyber resilience of the payment and 
 
5  Article 11 of Regulation (EU) No 909/2014  in conjunction with Article s 8(2)(2) and 42(2)(4) of the Law on Lietuvos 
bankas.  
6  Article 12 of Regulation (EU) No 909/2014.  
7  Regulation of the European Central Bank (EU) No 795/2014 of 3 July 2014 on oversight requirements for 
systemically important payment systems (ECB/2014/28) (OJ L 217, 23.7.2014, p. 16).  
ECB -PUBLIC  
3 securities settlement systems operating in Lithuania;  and (3) support the r ole of Lietuvos bankas 
as an overseer of these systems . 
2.2 Furthermore, the ECB welcomes the alignment and implementation in the oversight activities of 
Lietuvos bankas with the Eurosystem’s  major incident reporting framework and with the criteria 
described in the framework and respective oversight guide for systemically important payment 
systems and retail payment systems.  
2.3 The ECB also welcomes the alignment of the draft resolution with the CPMI -IOSCO’s Guidance on 
cyber resilience  for financial market infrastructures8, which the ECB has operationalised in its C yber 
Resilience Oversight Expectations for financial market infrastructures (CROE)9. The ECB suggests 
that any guidance on cybersecurity developed under the draft resolution  should be aligned with the 
CROE.  
2.4 In addition, t he ECB recommends th at the draft resolution follows  the ECB policy regarding the 
identification and oversight of critical service providers of financial market infrastructures10. 
2.5 Finally, the ECB takes note that the draft resolution aims to ensure consistency with the 
requirements laid down in Regulation (EU) No 909/2014. To that end,  the ECB understands that 
no requirements that the draft resolution  sets out for CSDs and the securities settlement systems 
that they operate refer to those aspects that Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 has already harmonised 
at Union level , except  for the specific cases provided for in this  Regulation.  
 
This opinion will b e published on EUR -Lex. 
 
 
Done at Frankfurt am Main,  15 November  2021.  
 
[signed]  
 
The President of the ECB  
Christine  LAGARDE  
 
8  Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures  of the Bank for Int ernational Settlements and the International 
Organization of Securities Commissions. Available on the Bank for International Settlements’ website at 
www.bis.org . 
9  Cyber resilience oversight expectations for financial market infrastructures (December 2018) . can be accessed using 
the following link:  CROE .  
10  Eurosystem oversight policy framework, Revised version (July 2016) available on the ECB’s website at 
www.ecb.europa.eu .