TAIWAN Law and Practice Contributed by: Robin Chang, Sarah Wu and Eddie Hsiung, Lee & Li
Peer-to-Peer Lending As of the time of writing, there are no specific laws or regulations governing peer-to-peer lending in Taiwan. However, the Bankers Association has introduced the “Self-Disciplinary Rules of Business Co-operation Between Member Banks of the Bankers Association and Peer-to-Peer Lending Operators”. These rules, filed with the FSC, outline areas in which banks can collaborate with peer-to-peer lending operators, such as fund custodian services, cash flow services, credit review and rating services, extending facilities to cus - tomers (peer-to-bank model), advertising and market - ing activities, and credit document custody services. Additionally, the FSC expressed its stance in related press releases that platform operators involved in matching peer-to-peer lending should not be regu - lated by the FSC at this time. Nevertheless, the FSC issued guidelines for peer-to-peer lending platform operators in October 2023 (the “P2P Guidelines”). Key aspects of those P2P Guidelines include the prohibi - tion of regulated activities (eg, deposit taking, issuing of securities), implementation of a risk control mecha - nism (covering aspects such as real-name basis for lenders and borrowers, fund flow control, criteria for reviewing loan applications, and loan amount limits) and the inclusion of consumer protection measures. TheP2P lending association was officially established in April 2025. Members would be required to follow the self-regulatory guidelines set forth by the asso - ciation. Electronic Payment (or E-Payment) In 2015, Taiwan introduced the Electronic Payment Institutions Act (the “E-Payment Act”) to regulate the online payment sector. Subsequently, in Decem - ber 2020, the Legislative Yuan, Taiwan’s congress, implemented an amendment to the E-Payment Act, which officially came into effect on 1 July 2021. The modified E-Payment Act outlines the business scope for e-payment institutions, covering both “core busi - nesses” and ancillary and derivative businesses. The core businesses of an e-payment institution include (i) collecting and making payments for real transactions as an agent, (ii) accepting deposits of funds as stored-value funds, (iii) small-amount
domestic and cross-border remittance services and (iv) foreign exchange services relating to the core businesses. The ancillary and derivative businesses of an e-payment institution include (a) assisting the contracted merchants with integration and transmis - sion of acquiring and payment information, (b) shar - ing terminal equipment at the contracted merchants, (c) assisting the information exchange between the users and the contracted merchants, (d) providing an electronic Uniform Invoice system and its value- added services, (e) taking custody of the paid price of vouchers/tickets of goods/services, and assisting in the issuance, sales, validation and related services for vouchers/tickets, (f) providing services for integra - tion of bonus points and offsetting/settling payments for real transactions with bonus points, (g) providing value-storing blocks in electronic stored-value cards or application programs for use by others, and (h) providing any planning, instalment, maintenance or consultancy services for the information system and facilities in relation to the above seven ancillary and derivative businesses of e-payment institutions. The amended E-Payment Act also permits qualified non-e-payment institutions to apply to become a cross-border small-amount remittance service pro - vider exclusively for foreign workers in Taiwan. In Taiwan, for core business (i) above (collecting and making payments for real transactions as an agent), the FSC’s prior approval or licence is not required if the total amount of funds held by the institution as an agent does not exceed the limit set by the FSC. Such entities are classified as “third-party payment service providers” under Taiwan’s current regulatory regime. However, with the recent amendment to the Taiwan AML Act, these providers must now register with the FSC for AML purposes. Failure to complete this reg - istration could result in criminal liability. Robo-Advisers In June 2017, the Securities Investment Trust and Consulting Association of Taiwan, the self-disciplinary body for the asset management industry, introduced the Operating Rules for Securities Investment Con - sulting Enterprises Using Automated Tools to Pro - vide Consulting Service (the “Robo-Adviser Rules”), as approved by the FSC. According to these rules,
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