CELEX: 32022D0021
Language: en
Date: 2022-04-22 00:00:00
Title: DECISION (EU) OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK of 22 April 2022 on the identification of CORE(FR) as a systemically important payment system pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 on oversight requirements for systemically important payment systems and repealing Decision ECB/2014/37 (ECB/2022/21)

EN                                                                                                 ECB-PUBLIC
                                   DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK
                                                  of 22 April 2022
      on the identification of CORE(FR) as a systemically important payment system pursuant to
           Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 on oversight requirements for systemically important
                             payment systems and repealing Decision ECB/2014/37
                                                   (ECB/2022/21)
  THE GOVERNING COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK,
  Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 127(2)
  thereof,
  Having regard to the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank,
  and in particular Article 3.1, Article 22 and the first indent of Article 34.1 thereof,
  Having regard to Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 of the European Central Bank of 3 July 2014 on oversight
  requirements for systemically important payment systems (ECB/2014/28) 1 and, in particular, Articles 1(2)
  and 1(3-a)(a) thereof,
  Whereas:
  (1)   The fourth indent of Article 127(2) of the Treaty and the fourth indent of Article 3.1 of the Statute of
        the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank empower the Eurosystem
        to promote the smooth operation of payment systems.
  (2)   The Eurosystem promotes the smooth operation of payment systems, inter alia, by conducting
        oversight.
  (3)   The European Central Bank (ECB) has implemented the principles for financial market infrastructures
        issued by the Committee on Payment and Settlement Systems (CPSS) of the Bank for International
        Settlements (BIS) and the Technical Committee of the International Organization of Securities
        Commission (IOSCO), which harmonise and strengthen existing international oversight standards
        for, inter alia, systemically important payment systems, by means of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014
        (ECB/2014/28).
  (4)   Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28) was amended to respond to the fast-moving
        technological trends coupled with changing consumer preferences that may give rise to fundamental
        changes in the way payments are made. Against this background, an additional, flexible and forward-
        looking methodology for the identification of a systemically important payment system (SIPS) has been
        put in place to ensure that all potentially relevant factors of systemic importance are taken into account
        in the identification of payment systems, and that such payment systems are subject to the highest
1
         OJ L 217, 23.7.2012, p. 16-30.
                                                            1
 ---pagebreak--- EN                                                                                                         ECB-PUBLIC
        applicable oversight standards as laid down in Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28).
  (5)   In the course of the identification exercise pursuant to Article 1(2) of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014,
        the Governing Council has verified that, in relation to CORE (COmpensation REtail) (FR) (hereinafter
        ‘CORE(FR)’), all the criteria mentioned in Article 1(3-a)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 have been
        fulfilled, as described in the Annex to this Decision. For the verification exercise on which this
        Decision is based, public data for the calendar year 2018 and 2019 have been used, combined with
        responses to ECB surveys.
  (6)   CORE(FR) was previously identified as a SIPS in Decision ECB/2014/37 of the European Central
        Bank2 on the basis of the criteria mentioned in Article 1(3) of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014
        (ECB/2014/28). That Decision requires the addressee to comply with Articles 3 to 21 of Regulation
        (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28). Following the identification of CORE(FR) as a SIPS on the basis
        of the criteria mentioned in Article 1(3-a)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28), the
        addressee of this Decision will be subject to those same requirements. Therefore, the period of one
        year for compliance with these requirements that is laid down in Article 25(2) of Regulation (EU) No
        795/2014 (ECB/2014/28) should not apply.
  (7)   The addressee of this Decision has been provided with the opportunity to express in writing any
        objections, views and comments regarding the facts and legal grounds presented in the Decision.
  (8)   This Decision should replace Decision ECB/2014/37, which should be repealed,
  HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
                                                         Article 1
                                                       Definitions
  Terms used in this Decision have the same meaning as those in Regulation (EU) No 795/2014
  (ECB/2014/28).
                                                         Article 2
                                     Identification of SIPS and SIPS operator
  1. CORE(FR) shall be identified as a systemically important payment system for the purposes of
      Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28) in accordance with the criteria in Article 1(3-a)(a) of that
      Regulation and on the basis of the reasons set out in the Annex to this Decision.
  2. In its capacity as operator of CORE(FR), STET shall ensure that this systemically important payment
      system complies with the requirements set out in Articles 3 to 21 of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014
2
         Decision of the ECB of 13 August 2014 on the identification of CORE(FR) as systemically important payment system
         pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 on oversight requirements for systemically important payment systems
         (ECB/2014/37).
                                                              2
 ---pagebreak--- EN                                                                                      ECB-PUBLIC
     (ECB/2014/28).
 3. Article 25(2) of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28) shall not apply.
                                                     Article 3
                                            Competent authority
 Banque de France shall be the competent authority for the oversight of CORE(FR).
                                                     Article 4
                                                      Repeal
 Decision ECB/2014/37 is repealed.
                                                     Article 5
                                                  Taking effect
This Decision shall take effect on the day of its notification to the addressee.
                                                     Article 6
                                                   Addressee
 This Decision is addressed to STET, Cœur Défense - Tour B - 100 esplanade du Général de Gaulle 92932
 La Défense Paris, France in its capacity as SIPS operator of CORE(FR).
 Done at Frankfurt am Main, 22 April 2022.
The President of the ECB
Christine LAGARDE
                                                         3
 ---pagebreak--- EN                                                                                                  ECB-PUBLIC
                                                                                                          ANNEX
  CORE (COmpensation REtail) (FR) (hereinafter ‘CORE(FR)’) was assessed against the criteria set out in
  Article 1(3-a)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014 (ECB/2014/28).
           Criterion                                                CORE(FR)
 Nature, size and complexity CORE(FR) is a domestic retail payment system based in France. It provides the
 of the payment system          service of netting of Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) credit transfers and of
                                domestic means of payment (cheques, card transactions, automated teller
                                machine (ATM) withdrawals, and bills of exchange).
                                Despite its purely domestic scope of operations, the size of CORE(FR)’s activity
                                positions CORE(FR) as the largest payment system in the EU by EU market
                                share in terms of the volume of euro-denominated payments processed both in
                                2018 and 2019, and as the second largest retail payment system in the EU by
                                EU market share in terms of the value of euro-denominated payments
                                processed both in 2018 and 2019.
                                The total daily average value of euro-denominated payments processed by
                                CORE(FR) has remained stable at approximately double the amount of the
                                quantitative threshold stipulated in Article 1(3)(i) of Regulation (EU) No 795/2014
                                (ECB/2014/28).
                                CORE(FR)’s participants are interconnected with CORE(FR) through the
                                processing of domestic payment schemes that have been adapted specifically
                                to the needs of CORE(FR) and its participants, and through the use of an in-
                                house messaging system between CORE(FR) and its participants.
                                CORE(FR) shares its technical platform (CORE) with SEPA(EU), which is a
                                payment system also operated by STET, and with the Centre for Exchange and
                                Clearing (CEC) which is a prominently important retail payment system in
                                Belgium. As a result, several functions used by CORE(FR), in particular
                                governance and risk management, are interconnected with and shared with
                                these systems.
                                Criterion fulfilled
 The nature and importance      All private sector direct participants of CORE(FR) are credit institutions
 of the payment system’s        designated as either global systemically important banks (G-SIBs) or other
 participants                   systemically important institutions (O-SIIs). The two other participants are
                                Banque de France and the Caisse des Dépôts et des Consignations, both of
                                which are major public sector institutions in France.
                                Criterion fulfilled
                                                         4
 ---pagebreak--- EN                                                                                               ECB-PUBLIC
 The substitutability of the     For domestic non-SEPA payments (cheques, card payments, ATM withdrawals
 payment system and the          and bills of exchange), which comprised 82% of CORE(FR)’s total volume of
 availability of alternatives to payment transactions processed in 2019, the substitutability of CORE(FR) by
 it                              other payment systems is assessed as low both in the short term (within 1
                                 month) and the medium term (within 12 months). A transfer of these domestic
                                 non-SEPA payments would require the integration of the respective payment
                                 schemes into at least one other system, implying the need for potential system-
                                 wide and scheme-specific adjustments. This is considered to be challenging,
                                 even over a 12-month period. It would also pose technical challenges to the
                                 participants’ infrastructures, which have been integrated with CORE(FR) and the
                                 respective domestic schemes.
                                 SEPA payments, which comprised 18% of CORE(FR)’s total volume of payment
                                 transactions processed in 2019, would in principle be transferable from
                                 CORE(FR) to other systems. However, CORE(FR)’s participants would face
                                 substantial technical challenges in adapting their systems and procedures in the
                                 short term so as to redirect all of their SEPA payments to other systems while at
                                 the same time complying with the respective rules and procedures of those
                                 systems. As a consequence, the substitutability of CORE(FR) regarding the
                                 processing of its SEPA payments in the short term is assessed as low.
                                 Criterion fulfilled
 The relationship,               Any incident affecting CORE(FR) could have significant knock-on effects on the
 interdependencies, and          French economy, due to the central position of CORE(FR) in the French
 other interactions the          payments market, in which it processes more than half of all payment
 system has with the wider       transactions involving non-monetary financial institutions in France.
 financial system                Furthermore, given that four significant participants of CORE(FR) are G-SIBs,
                                 any incident impacting CORE(FR) may also have an adverse impact on the
                                 global financial system.
                                 Finally, as mentioned above, CORE(FR) shares its technical platform,
                                 governance, and risk management with SEPA(EU), which is also operated by
                                 STET. In addition, STET provides the technical platform for the Belgian system
                                 CEC, leading to interdependencies relating to governance and risk
                                 management. Therefore, the management and performance of CORE(FR) is of
                                 relevance to a wider group of related systems and their markets.
                                 Criterion fulfilled
                                                           5