Opinion of the European Central Bank of 28 March 2022 on authorisation of credit institutions to provide crowdfunding services (CON/2022/13)
Date: 2022-03-28
Institutions: European Central Bank
Subjects: legal basis

EN 

ECB-PUBLIC 

OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK 

of 28 March 2022 

on authorisation of credit institutions to provide crowdfunding services 

(CON/2022/13) 

Introduction and legal basis 

On 21 February 2022 the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from the Bulgarian Minister for 

Finance for  an opinion on  a draft law  amending the law on public offering  of securities 1 and other  laws 

(hereinafter the ‘draft law’). 

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 third indent of Article 2(1) of Council Decision 98/415/EC2, as 

the draft law relates to Българска народна банка (Bulgarian National Bank, BNB) as well as the ECB’s 

tasks concerning the prudential supervision of credit institutions pursuant to Article 127(6) of the Treaty. In 

accordance with the first 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 law

The  main  purpose  of  the  draft  law  is  to  introduce  into  Bulgarian  law  technical  implementing  measures

necessary  in  order  to  comply  with  Regulation  (EU)  2020/1503  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the

Council3.  In  particular,  the  draft  law  designates  Комисия  за  финансов  надзор  (Financial  Supervision

Commission  (FSC))  as  the  competent  authority  responsible  for  authorising  an  entity  as  a  crowdfunding

service provider and confers on the FSC supervisory, investigatory and sanctioning powers in relation to

compliance  with  the  requirements  of  Regulation  (EU)  2020/1503  and  of  the  draft  law.  The  draft  law

introduces one exception to this general rule, by conferring on BNB the task to authorise and withdraw the

authorisation for credit institutions to perform the activity of crowdfunding service providers. To this end the

draft law supplements Articles 2(2) and 103(10) of the Law on credit institutions 4.

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Law  on  public  offering  of  securities  (Закон  за  публичното  предлагане  на  ценни  книжа,  обн.  ДВ,  бр.  114  от 
30.12.1999 г.). 

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). 

  Regulation  (EU)  2020/1503  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  7  October  2020  on  European 
crowdfunding service providers for business and amending Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 and Directive (EU) 2019/1937 
(OJ L 347, 20.10.2020, p. 1). 

Law on credit institutions (Закон за кредитните институции, обн. ДВ, бр. 59 от 21.07.2006 г.). 

ECB-PUBLIC 

2.

Specific observations

2.1  Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 must be interpreted in line with Directive 2013/36/EU of the European

Parliament and of the Council5, to which it refers 6. In particular, while Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 

refers to credit institutions acting as crowdfunding service providers7, it does not affect in any way 

the authorisation requirements under Directive 2013/36/EU. Whether a credit institution has applied 

for and has obtained an authorisation to provide crowdfunding services 8 or whether authorisation to 

provide such services has been withdrawn 9 does not affect the authorisation of such credit institution 

granted in accordance with Directive 2013/36/EU 10. 

2.2  Within the Single Supervisory Mechanism Article 4(1)(a) of Council Regulation (EU) No 1024/201311 

gives the ECB the exclusive task of authorising credit institutions and withdrawing authorisations of 

credit institutions. Close cooperation between the ECB and BNB started on 1 October 202012 and 

the  Republic  of  Bulgaria  is  a  participating  Member  State  within  the  meaning  of  Regulation  (EU) 

No 1024/2013.  

2.3  The  draft  law’s  provisions  laying  down  technical  implementing  measures  for  Regulation  (EU) 

2020/1503 regarding the authorisation and the withdrawal of the authorisation for credit institutions 

to  perform  the  activity  of  crowdfunding  service  providers  must  be  interpreted  in  accordance  with 

Directive 2013/36/EU  and  Regulation  (EU)  No 1024/2013.  In  accordance  with  Article  6(4)  of 

Regulation  (EU)  No 1024/2013,  the  ECB  exercises  its  responsibility  under  Article 4(1)(a)  of  that 

Regulation in respect of both significant and less significant institutions. This task is exercised for all 

banking activities listed in Annex I to Directive 2013/36/EU as well as for any additional activity for 

which  an  authorisation  is  required  under  national  law 13,  insofar  as  this  authorisation  requirement 

underpins a prudential supervisory function under Union law14.  

2.4  The provision of crowdfunding services is not included in Annex I to Directive 2013/36/EU, and the 

authorisation  requirement  for  crowdfunding  services  does  not  underpin  a  prudential  supervisory 

function under Union law. 

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Directive 2013/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on access to the activity of credit 
institutions  and  the  prudential  supervision  of  credit  institutions,  amending  Directive  2002/87/EC  and  repealing 
Directives 2006/48/EC and 2006/49/EC (OJ L 176, 27.6.2013, p. 338). 

See for example recital 35 of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503. 
Article 1(3) of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503. 
Article 12(14) of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503. 

Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503. 
See also recital 9 of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503. 

Council Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013 of 15 October 2013 conferring specific tasks on the European Central Bank 
concerning policies relating to the prudential supervision of credit institutions (OJ L 287, 29.10.2013, p. 63). 

Decision (EU) 2020/1015 of the European Central Bank of 24 June 2020 on the establishment of close cooperation 
between  the  European  Central  Bank  and  Българска  народна  банка  (Bulgarian  National  Bank)  (ECB/2020/30) 
(OJ L 224I, 13.7.2020, p. 1). 
See  paragraph  3.1  of  Opinion  CON/2019/1  and  paragraph  3.1  of  Opinion  CON/2021/26.  All  ECB  opinions  are 
published on EUR-Lex. 
See  ECB  Guide 
https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/ecb/pub/pdf/ssm.201901_guide_assessment_credit_inst_licensing_appl.
en.pdf 

assessments 

applications, 

paragraph 

January 

licence 

2019, 

4.3. 

to 

of 

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ECB-PUBLIC 

2.5  The main objective of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 is to foster cross-border crowdfunding services by 

addressing the existing obstacles to the proper functioning of the internal market in crowdfunding 

services and ensuring a high level of investor protection15. The supervision of the activities under 

Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 is distinct from and without prejudice to the ECB’s prudential supervisory 

tasks  under  Regulation  (EU)  No  1024/2013.  Accordingly,  the  purpose  of  the  authorisation 

requirement set out in Article 12 of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 is to facilitate cross-border provision 

of those services, reduce operational risks, and ensure a high degree of transparency and investor 

protection16.  In this regard the competent authority assesses the quality of the crowdfunding service 

provider’s management, internal organisation and procedures established to ensure compliance17. 

The requirements set out in Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 including the authorisation and withdrawal 

of  authorisation  for  credit  institutions  to  provide  crowdfunding  services,  are  therefore  aimed  at 

protecting  investors.  Accordingly,  those  requirements  fall  under  the  remit  of  national  competent 

authorities and not of the ECB. 

2.6  Accordingly, the competence conferred on BNB by the draft law to authorise and to withdraw the 

authorisation for credit institutions to provide crowdfunding services must be without prejudice to the 

ECB’s  competence  to  issue  or  withdraw  authorisations  of  credit  institutions  pursuant  to  Directive 

2013/36/EU and Regulation (EU) No 1024/2013. 

3.

Tasks of BNB

3.1  The  provisions  of  the  draft  law  relating  to  the  new  powers  of  BNB  do  not  extend  the  current

supervisory  mandate  of  BNB.  BNB  is  responsible  for  supervising  credit  institutions  and  the  tasks 

carried out by BNB in this regard are not limited to prudential supervisory purposes18. 

3.2  The authorisation and the withdrawal of authorisation for credit institutions to provide crowdfunding 

services are not intrinsically distinct from the tasks already carried out by BNB with respect to the 

authorisation of other activities of credit  institutions19. Moreover, in accordance with the proposed 

amendments  to  Articles 14(2)  and 103(10)  of  the  Law  on  credit  institutions,  BNB  will  rely  on  the 

assessment undertaken by the FSC where it has been called upon to both authorise and to withdraw 

the authorisation for credit institutions to provide crowdfunding services 20. BNB’s tasks in relation to 

such authorisation are therefore rather limited. 

3.3 

It follows that the draft law does not confer genuinely new tasks on BNB, but rather specifies certain 

new powers that BNB may exercise when carrying out the same category of tasks already discharged 

in accordance with the Law on credit institutions. Consequently, it is not necessary to assess whether 

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Recital 7 of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503. 

Recital 30 of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503. 
Recital 34 of Regulation (EU) 2020/1503. 

Article 1(2) of the Law on credit institutions. 
Article 2(2)(9) of the Law on credit institutions. 
See proposed new Article 212a(3) of the Law on public offering of securities, which provides that the FSC must notify 
BNB of the application of supervisory measures in relation to a credit institution providing crowdfunding services. 

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the  conferral  of  new  tasks  on  a  national  central  bank  complies  with  the  prohibition  of  monetary 

financing in this case21. 

ECB-PUBLIC 

This opinion will be published on EUR-Lex. 

Done at Frankfurt am Main, 28 March 2022. 

[signed] 

The President of the ECB 

Christine LAGARDE 

21 

See paragraph 3.3 of Opinion CON/2017/36 and paragraph 5.2.1 of Opinion CON/2021/9. 

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