News

On October 19, 2022 the Supreme Administrative Court of Lithuania (SACL) ruled to request a preliminary ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in an administrative case regarding the application of provisions of the Republic of Lithuania Law on Electronic Money and Electronic Money Institutions which prohibit the issuance of electronic money without being an issuer of electronic money.

SACL inquired whether in circumstances such as those in the main proceedings, where a payment institution accepts funds without a specific payment order to transfer them on the same or following business day and the funds remain in the payment institution’s account intended for carrying out payment transactions for longer than the time limits for the execution of the payment service laid down by the legislation, are the actions of the payment institution to be regarded as:

(a) a part of a payment service or a payment transaction, as defined in points 3 and 5 of Article 4 of Directive (EU) 2015/2366 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015 on payment services in the internal market, amending Directives 2002/65/EC, 2009/110/EC and 2013/36/EU and Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010, and repealing Directive 2007/64/EC, performed by the payment institution; or

(b) the issuance of electronic money as defined in point 2 of Article 2 of Directive 2009/110/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2009 on the taking up, pursuit and prudential supervision of the business of electronic money institutions amending Directives 2005/60/EC and 2006/48/EC and repealing Directive 2000/46/EC.

The proceedings of the administrative case are suspended until the Court of Justice of the European Union issues a preliminary ruling.

Case No. eA-464-552/2022, Case ID C-661/22.