Since our last publication, the Payment Systems and Services and Electronic Money (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2017 and the Banking Act 2009 (Service Providers to Payment Systems) Order 2017 have been published.

UK

Payment Systems and Services and Electronic Money (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2017 published

The Payment Systems and Services and Electronic Money (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2017 have been published. The Regulations make a number of amendments to other statutory instruments relating to payment services and systems and electronic money:

• Part 2 amends the Financial Markets and Insolvency (Settlement Finality) Regulations 1999 to extend protection from insolvency proceedings for transfers in systems that have been designated under those Regulations until those transfers have been settled, so that the protection applies to transfers originating from non-bank payment institutions.
• Part 3 amends the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (PSRs), the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 (SI 2011/99) (EMRs) and other related instruments. The amendments enable funds safeguarded for customers of payment service providers (PSPs) and electronic money issuers to be held in a single bank account, make provision for agents of registered account information service providers, make provision for electronic money issuing services in Gibraltar by UK firms and vice versa, and enable the FCA to continue to consider spent convictions when making decisions relating to PSPs.
• Part 4 amends the Banking Act 2009 (Inter-Bank Payment Systems) (Disclosure and Publication of Specified Information) Regulations 2010 as a consequence of amendments to the Banking Act 2009 made by the Digital Economy Act 2017.

Legislation.gov, 30 November 2017

Banking Act 2009 (Service Providers to Payment Systems) Order 2017 published

The Banking Act 2009 (Service Providers to Payment Systems) Order 2017 has been published. Among other things:

• Part 2 of the Order amends Part 5 of the Banking Act 2009, which provides for the Bank of England (BoE) to oversee certain service providers to systemically important payment systems. Part 2 also makes consequential amendments to related secondary legislation.
• Part 3 of the Order amends the Bank of England Act 1998 so that the BoE may disclose the information that it obtains under that Act to the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR).
• Part 4 of the Order amends the Financial Services and Markets 2000 (Excluded Activities and Prohibitions) Order 2014 in consequence of amendments to the Banking Act 2009 made by the Digital Economy Act 2017.

The Order comes into force on 30 November 2017, except for Part 3, which comes into force on 13 January 2018.

Legislation.gov, 30 November 2017

Guidance on “free trial” or other promotional offer subscription models

The ASA has published guidance focusing on how to make sure subscription promotions remain compliant. It acknowledges that these offers can be a good way to introduce and showcase a product, but states that if a consumer must enrol into an ongoing payment arrangement to take advantage of the offer, this should be clear and upfront in the ad. Ads for “free trial” or promotional subscription offers must make the following significant conditions clear:

• whether a paid subscription starts automatically (after the trial) unless cancelled;
• the extent of the financial commitment if the subscription is not cancelled (during the trial); and
• any other significant conditions: for example, significant costs to participate.

ASA, 27 November 2017

FCA publishes quarterly consultation paper

The FCA has published its 19th quarterly consultation paper (CP17/39). The paper invites comments on proposed changes to the FCA Handbook. For InCredit readers, the most relevant include:

• proposed changes to DISP
• enforcement and other IDD related changes
• changes to collect the FOS levy from RAISPs
• amendments to SUP 16 Annex 42BG, which contains guidance notes on financial crime reporting, to reflect the Money Laundering Regulations that came into force during the summer; and
• changes to the reporting requirements in the Supervision manual.

FCA, 1 December 2017

CMA to take enforcement action against secondary ticketing websites

The CMA has announced that it will take enforcement action against secondary ticketing websites which it suspects break consumer protection laws. In its investigation into the sector, the CMA has identified concerns about the information consumers are given. It acknowledges that some ticketing websites have already addressed their issues since it opened its investigation, but wants to ensure that all sites comply with the law and their customers are properly informed about the tickets they are buying.

Gov.uk, 28 November 2017

EU

Competitiveness Council adopts Regulation on cooperation between national consumer protection authorities

The Competitiveness Council has formally adopted the European Commission proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and Council on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws. The new Regulation focuses on improving the EU-wide cooperation mechanism for consumer protection by heightening national authority powers to enforce consumer rights, and allowing the Commission to coordinate common actions among enforcement authorities.

European Council, 30 November 2017