GREECE Law and Practice Contributed by: Paris Tzoumas, Vivian Efthymiou and Dimitrios Mekakas, Zepos & Yannopoulos
Authorisation Process The authorisation of a credit institution in Greece by the ECB/BoG is subject to the requirements set out in Law 4261 as supplemented by the BoG Act 142/11.6.2018, as amended and in force, as well as other BoG acts. For a legal entity to be licensed as a credit insti - tution, it must have at least the following: • fully paid-up initial capital equal to EUR18 million (for credit co-operatives, an amount of EUR6 million, and for the branches of third-country credit institutions, EUR9 million) as well as payment of any additional funds that may be required in order to ensure that, during the first three years of operation, the own funds of the new credit institution will meet the expected capital requirements and the minimum initial capital requirement on a continuous basis (as of 2022, credit co- operatives must adjust their initial capital to EUR10 million, or to EUR18 million depending on their registered seat); • suitable shareholders who are subject to an assessment by the ECB/BoG; • at least two persons who effectively direct the business and are subject to “fit and proper” assessment; • board of directors (BoD) members that are subject to “fit and proper assessment” pursu - ant to BoG Act 224/21.12.2023; and • participation in the Deposit Guarantee Scheme. The licensing application must be accompanied, inter alia, by the following. • A programme of operations setting out the types of business envisaged and the struc - tural organisation of the credit institution, including an indication of the parent under -
• credit reference services, including customer credit rating; • safe custody services; • issuing electronic money; and • investment services and activities as well as ancillary services provided for in Law 4514/2018 (MiFID II services). As regards MiFID II services, credit institutions may also provide these in relation to DLT finan - cial instruments (ie, financial instruments under Law 4514/2018, which are issued, registered, transferred or stored by the use of blockchain). In addition to the above, the BoG may allow credit institutions to carry out other financial or ancillary activities, provided that the relevant risks are fully hedged. Natural persons or legal entities that are not licensed credit institutions are prohibited from taking deposits or other repayable funds from the public. Moreover, the provision of credit/ financing, in a professional capacity, is a regu - lated activity in Greece, which is allowed only to duly licensed credit institutions or certain finan - cial institutions (such as Greek authorised credit companies). EU licensed credit institutions may perform banking activities in Greece on the basis of the EU passport – ie, through their right to estab - lishment or on a cross-border basis, provided that the EU licensed credit institution notifies the home member state’s authority that, in turn, transmits the notification to the BoG. If the EU credit institution wishes to establish a branch in Greece, the branch will be subject to certain local requirements (including the Greek AML framework).
215 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook