rec_16

(16) It is essential for any payment service provider to be able to access the services of technical infrastructures of payment systems. Such access should, however, be subject to appropriate requirements in order to ensure integrity and stability of those systems. Each payment service provider applying for a participation in a payment system should furnish proof to the participants of the payment system that its internal arrangements are sufficiently robust against all kinds of risk. These payment systems typically include e.g. the four-party card schemes as well as major systems processing credit transfers and direct debits. In order to ensure equality of treatment throughout the Community as between the different categories of authorised payment service providers, according to the terms of their licence, it is necessary to clarify the rules concerning access to the provision of payment services and access to payment systems. Provision should be made for the non-discriminatory treatment of authorised payment institutions and credit institutions so that any payment service provider competing in the internal market is able to use the services of the technical infrastructures of these payment systems under the same conditions. It is appropriate to provide for different treatment for authorised payment service providers and for those benefiting from a waiver under this Directive as well as from the waiver under the Article 8 of the Directive 2000/46/EC, due to the differences in their prudential framework. In any case differences in price conditions should be allowed only when this is motivated by differences in costs induced by the payment service providers. This should be without prejudice to Member States' right to limit access to systemically important systems in accordance with Directive 98/26/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 May 1998 on settlement finality in payment and securities settlement systems OJ L 166, 11.6.1998, p. 45. and without prejudice to the competence of the European Central Bank and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB), as laid down in Article 105(2) of the Treaty and Article 3(1) and Article 22 of the Statute of the ESCB, concerning access to payment systems.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-10-09 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.