ARGENTINA Law and Practice Contributed by: Santiago J. Mora, Nicolas Garfunkel, Milagros Caneda and May Steward, GPG Advisory Partners
a series of additional obligations in terms of identifying and monitoring their clients. 4.3 Sources of Funds for Fiat Currency Loans See 4.1 Differences in the Business or Regula - tion of Loans Provided to Different Entities and 4.4 Syndication of Fiat Currency Loans . 4.4 Syndication of Fiat Currency Loans Although they are not a syndication of loans in the traditional sense, crowdlending platforms that currently operate in the local market (where loans are funded by several investors through the platform) could be regarded as a case of syndication of loans. This activity is subject to the PSCPP regime mentioned in 2.2 Regulatory Regime , which establishes the need to register and report to the BCRA, as well as a series of information duties addressed to the platform’s clients, and cer - tain obligations and conditions applicable to its operation, including the obligation to segregate the funds of its clients. Under certain conditions, PSCPPs may provide credit analysis, adminis - tration and collection management services.
its operation, including the obligation to segre - gate the funds of its clients and the obligation to refund client funds immediately upon request. During 2020 and 2021, the BCRA promoted interoperability among different PSPCPs and among PSPCPs and banks. For this purpose, it created the so-called Uniform Virtual Code (CVU) to identify virtual accounts provided by PSPCPs and introduced standards for payments through rapid-response codes (QR codes) to make it possible for customers of one payment systems (a banking account or a virtual account provided by a PSPCP) to execute payments in shops added in a different payment system. At the very beginning, this was only available for payments with account balance. In 2022, the BCRA established a regulatory framework for “payments initiation services pro- viders” ( proveedores de servicios de iniciación de pagos or PSI), requiring their registration, among other things. Likewise, the BCRA regu - lated “pull” transfers, empowering PSIs and PSPCPs to initiate payments. Technical speci - fications were finalised during 2023. During 2022, the BCRA established special authentication and cybersecurity requirements for PSIs and PSPCPs, stipulated special respon - sibilities with regard to consumer protection for the companies involved in these businesses, and required the entire financial industry to imple - ment certain anti-fraud measures. Many of these measures were strengthened and reinforced for all PSPs during 2023. In 2023, the BCRA regulated new roles of PSPs and required these players to register. The roles are acquiring, aggregation or sub-acquiring, and non-bank agencies that collect payment of taxes and/or services.
5. Payment Processors 5.1 Payment Processors’ Use of Payment Rails
Payment processors can use existing payment rails or create and implement new payment rails. In January 2020, the BCRA imposed the PSPCP regime mentioned in 2.2 Regulatory Regime , which establishes the need to register and report to the BCRA, as well as a series of information duties addressed to the processor’s clients, and certain obligations and conditions applicable to
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