Article 1

Scope, definitions and restriction of activities 1. This Directive shall apply to electronic money institutions. 2. It shall not apply to the institutions referred to in Article 2(3) of Directive 2000/12/EC. 3. For the purposes of this Directive: "electronic money institution" shall mean an undertaking or any other legal person, other than a credit institution as defined in Article 1, point 1, first subparagraph (a) of Directive 2000/12/EC which issues means of payment in the form of electronic money; "electronic money" shall mean monetary value as represented by a claim on the issuer which is: stored on an electronic device; issued on receipt of funds of an amount not less in value than the monetary value issued; accepted as means of payment by undertakings other than the issuer. 4. Member States shall prohibit persons or undertakings that are not credit institutions, as defined in Article 1, point 1, first subparagraph of Directive 2000/12/EC, from carrying on the business of issuing electronic money. 5. The business activities of electronic money institutions other than the issuing of electronic money shall be restricted to: the provision of closely related financial and non-financial services such as the administering of electronic money by the performance of operational and other ancillary functions related to its issuance, and the issuing and administering of other means of payment but excluding the granting of any form of credit; and the storing of data on the electronic device on behalf of other undertakings or public institutions. Electronic money institutions shall not have any holdings in other undertakings except where these undertakings perform operational or other ancillary functions related to electronic money issued or distributed by the institution concerned.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-10-11 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.