IRELAND Law and Practice Contributed by: Keith Robinson, Barry Tyrrell and Julia Mullin, Dillon Eustace LLP
• Internal controls and risk management: adequate systems to manage risks, including operational, credit and market risks. The process for applying for authorisation is as follows. Pre-application phase This phase includes the applicant credit institu - tion engaging with the CBI through a pre-appli - cation meeting. This is a means by which the CBI can understand the nature of the applicant credit institutions’ business and enables the credit institution to gain clarity of the regula - tory expectations by the CBI and within the EU. The preliminary phase is called the “Exploratory Phase” and involves the submission of a high- level proposal for application which will include one or more calls or meetings with the CBI to identify any preliminary issues. Submission of application The process involves a comprehensive applica - tion for authorisation using the ECB’s informa - tion management system portal. This applica - tion must meet all aspects required by the ECB including: • general presentation of the applicant and its history, including background and justification for requesting the licence; • programme of operations, including intended activities, business model and the associated risk profile; • structural organisation of the applicant, including IT organisation and outsourcing requirements; • financial information, including forecast balance sheet and profit and loss account projections and adequacy of internal capital and liquidity; • suitability of shareholders; and
• suitability of the management board and key function holders and of the supervisory board. Where the applicant is a large credit institution, the ECB will play a significant role in determin - ing whether the application form is approved or rejected. Under the SSMR, the ECB has exclu - sive competence in respect of certain aspects of the prudential regulation of Irish banks, including the granting and withdrawal of banking licenc - es and the assessment of notifications of the acquisition and disposal of qualifying holdings in banks (except in the case of a bank resolution). Assessment and feedback The CBI will assess the application and conduct a detailed review of the application. This process typically involves multiple rounds of extensive comments and queries from the CBI and the ECB. The CBI, in conjunction with the ECB, will assess areas of the application including but not limited to financial soundness; programme operations; suitability of shareholders; and suit - ability of the management board and key func - tion holders and the supervisory board. Decision Once the application assessment is complete, the CBI in conjunction with the ECB will make a decision of approval or rejection of an appli - cation The ECB indicates that it usually takes between six and 12 months for a decision to be taken on an application. Where a licence is granted, it may be subject to specific conditions. Banking licences are issued without a time limi - tation subject to the entitlement of the CBI to withdraw the licence. Section 18(2) of the Companies Act 2014 pro - hibits private companies limited by shares from
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