IRELAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Niall Esler, Shane Martin, James O’Doherty and Laura Whitson, Walkers
The EBA Outsourcing Guidelines The EBA Outsourcing Guidelines require, inter alia, that outsourcing agreements specify ser - vice levels and precise quantitative and qualita - tive performance targets to allow for the timely monitoring of the performance of the outsourced function. Specific termination rights, provisions around business continuity, data and access and audit rights for the regulated firm and its regula - tors are also required. The ESMA Cloud Guide - lines and the EIOPA Cloud Guidelines may also be relevant to applicable entities where services are provided on a cloud basis. DORA A key requirement of DORA is that all contracts between financial entities (as defined in DORA) and ICT third-party service providers for the use of ICT services must meet certain minimum contractual requirements. Additional contractual requirements are placed on arrangements with ICT third-party service providers that support a critical or important function of the financial entity. 10. Blockchain 10.1 Use of Blockchain in the Financial Services Industry Traditional domestic and international institu - tions operating in Ireland are investigating the use of blockchain, and certain institutions have conducted trials in this area. Ireland is also home to a number of crypto-led businesses, and this population is expected to grow. 10.2 Local Regulators’ Approach to Blockchain The Central Bank’s Approach Firms providing certain services in relation to crypto-assets are required to obtain a CASP
authorisation (see 1.1 Evolution of the Fintech Market ). In December 2024, the Central Bank released its supervisory expectation for CASPs, outlining its risk appetite for crypto-asset ser - vices in Ireland. Outside of these processes, the Central Bank has issued consumer explainers and warnings, and remains cautious on the benefits and risks of crypto. However, it has acknowledged that technological innovation is a key feature of the environment in which it seeks to deliver its man - date. On 22 October 2024, the Department of Finance published its final report on the review of the “Funds Sector 2030” . One of the areas being examined is how technological change and innovation will influence future development, including mapping a pathway for the broader adoption of tokenisation. 10.3 Classification of Blockchain Assets The Central Bank has confirmed in a consumer warning that virtual currencies are not legal ten - der. Crypto-Assets in Scope of MiCAR MiCAR defines crypto-assets as “a digital rep- resentation of a value or of a right that is able to be transferred and stored electronically using distributed ledger technology or similar technol- ogy” . It applies only to crypto-assets that are not covered by existing EU legislation, and catego - rises in-scope crypto-assets into ARTs, EMTs and other type of crypto-assets, including utility tokens.
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