This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in Ireland published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 2 February 2023). Authors: Dillon Eustace LLP—Keith Robinson; Alex Kennedy 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? The governmental body with primary responsibility for regulating the Irish banking sector is the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI). The mission of the CBI is to safeguard monetary and financial stability by working to ensure that the financial system operates in the best interests of consumers and the wider economy. The CBI's statutory objectives include: • price stability; • the stability of the overall financial system; • the resolution of financial difficulties in banks and other regulated entities; • the proper and effective regulation of financial service providers and markets (while ensuring consumer protection); and • the efficient and effective operation of payment and settlement systems. Following the introduction of the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) on 4 November 2014, the European

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in Israel published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 6 March 2023). Authors: Arnon, Tadmor-Levy—Aviad Lachmanovitch; Guy Fuchs 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? Banking legislation in Israel developed over several decades, starting from the Banking Ordinance 1941 from the period of the British Mandate, which authorised the governor of the Bank of Israel to appoint a Supervisor of Banks. This ordinance was almost entirely replaced by the Banking (Licensing) Law 1981. The Bank of Israel Law of 1954 established a central bank. This law was later completely replaced by the Bank of Israel Law 2010. Any banking corporation (bank, foreign bank, mortgage bank, investment finance bank, etc) interested in operating in Israel requires a licence from the governor of the Bank of Israel.  The examination of whether to grant a licence under the Banking (Licensing) Law – conducted by the Licensing Committee (composed

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in Italy published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 24 January 2023). Authors: Ughi e Nunziante—Marcello Gioscia; Gianluigi Pugliese; Benedetto Colosimo; Alessandro Corbò 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? The main principles of the Italian system are to ensure the sound and prudent management of supervised entities, and the stability of the entire banking and financial system as well as its efficiency and competitiveness. The general structure of the banking sector in Italy has, over the past three decades, been based on the obligation to comply with the principles and rules arising from Italy's membership of the European Union. In this context, the prudential supervisory rules established at the European level apply. These concern, inter alia, the capital adequacy of banks, the concentration of risks, the organisation of the institutions and their internal controls, and the equity investments that can be held by banks. The

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in Japan published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 25 January 2023). Authors: TMI Associates—Yoshiyasu Yamaguchi; Hikaru Kaieda; Tae Ogita; Ken Omura 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? The mission set out by the Financial Services Agency of Japan (FSA) is to contribute to national welfare by securing the sustainable growth of the national economy and wealth through achieving the following three sets of goals: • financial stability and effective financial intermediation; • consumer protection and consumer benefit; and • market integrity, market transparency and market functions. 2. What are the defining characteristics of a bank to be caught by the banking laws and regulations? Is non-bank fintech regulated differently? The term 'bank' as used in Law No. 59 of 1981 (the Banking Law) means a business engaging in activities of: • acceptance of deposits or instalment savings, as well as the lending of funds

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in Luxembourg published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 7 February 2023). Authors: Loyens & Loeff—Adrien Pierre; Vanesa Gomez Pena 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? Luxembourg is a major financial centre and the development of the financial sector is, therefore, an important policy consideration. The Ministry of Finance works together with Luxembourg for Finance (the Luxembourg agency for the development of the financial centre) to promote, develop and diversify the Luxembourg financial centre, and identify new opportunities. Current priorities include digitalisation, anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), sustainable finance, and financial education. Policies are being adjusted as needed to address the covid-19 pandemic, to which the sector has been quite resilient. 2. What are the defining characteristics of a bank to be caught by the banking laws and regulations? Is non-bank fintech regulated differently? Credit institutions or banks are defined in the

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in Singapore published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 17 January 2023). Authors: WongPartnership LLP—Elaine Chan; Chan Jia Hui 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? Strong local banks will continue to remain at the core of the Singapore banking sector and the government's policy of maintaining the local banks' market share at no less than 50 per cent of the total resident deposits remains unchanged. Local banks will also continue to be subject to more stringent capital adequacy requirements than those required under Basel III to reflect their systemic importance to the Singapore economy and financial system. However, the Singapore government has also progressively liberalised the sector to allow greater competition from foreign banks in wholesale banking and retail banking to spur dynamism and innovation. The progressive liberalisation of the banking sector has led to the grant of qualifying full bank (QFB) licences to 10 foreign

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in South Africa published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 11 February 2022). Authors: White & Case—Joz Coetzer; Jennifer Stolp; Marianna Naicker 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? In 2011, the National Treasury published a policy document titled 'A safer financial sector to serve South Africa better' (the 2011 Policy Document). The 2011 Policy document identifies the following policy priorities for the financial services sector. Stability and soundness of financial institutions The primary objective of the central bank of South Africa – the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) – is to protect the value of South Africa's currency in the interest of balanced and sustainable economic growth in South Africa. The SARB assesses the stability and efficiency of South Africa's financial system. The Financial Sector Regulation Act 2017 (the FSR Act) commenced on 29 March 2018 and brought into effect the twin peaks model

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in Sri Lanka published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 31 January 2023). Authors: Tiruchelvam Associates—Heshika Rupasinghe 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? Banks in Sri Lanka are established under the Banking Act and require Monetary Board approval. There is no difference between foreign and local banks. Licences are issued to both commercial banks (LCBs) and specialised (or savings or deposit) banks (LSBs). Banks must either be public companies or a branch office of a foreign bank registered under the Companies Act. There are several banks owned by the government, partly to address the issue of most privately owned banks being concentrated in the capital and partly for resource allocation into priority sectors (eg, agriculture, small industry and regional development). Bank supervision by the Banking Supervision Department of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) is based on standards set by the Basel Committee

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in Switzerland published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 1 January 2023). Authors: Lenz & Staehelin—Patrick Hünerwadel; Shelby R du Pasquier; Marcel Tranchet; Isy Isaac Sakkal 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? The Swiss banking sector is subject to the supervision of the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA). FINMA licences are granted to legal entities that pursue banking activities, not to their managers or shareholders. The licensing requirements are set out in the Swiss Federal Act on Banks and Savings Banks (the Banking Act). Among other things, the applicant must establish that the persons entrusted with the management enjoy a good reputation and thereby assure proper conduct of business operations (ie, guarantee of irreproachable activity). If, at a later stage, any of the licence requirements are no longer satisfied, FINMA may take administrative measures that include, in extreme cases, withdrawal of the banking licence. One

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in USA published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 30 January 2023). Authors: Debevoise & Plimpton—Gregory J Lyons; Alison M Hashmall; Chen Xu 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? Given their importance to the US economy, banking organisations are among the most highly regulated institutions in the United States. Broadly speaking, governmental and regulatory policies have two areas of focus: (1) the safety and soundness of the banking organisations themselves; and (2) promoting economic and social objectives, including the separation of banking and commerce. As to the first area, banking organisations are subject to a wide range of laws, regulations and policies limiting their activities. While a typical US corporation can engage in any activity that is not prohibited by law, a banking organisation may only engage in activities permitted by the banking laws. In addition, banking organisations must maintain minimum capital and liquidity levels. As

This Practice Note contains a jurisdiction-specific Q&A guide to banking regulation in United Kingdom published as part of the Lexology Getting the Deal Through series by Law Business Research (Law stated at: 24 February 2023). Authors: 1 Crown Office Row—Edite Ligere 1. What are the principal governmental and regulatory policies that govern the banking sector? Two key regulators regulate the UK banking sector. The financial safety and soundness of banks is regulated for prudential purposes by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), which is part of the Bank of England, the United Kingdom's central bank. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulates how banks conduct themselves within financial markets and with clients. The Financial Policy Committee (FPC), which operates from within the Bank of England, acts as the macroprudential regulator for the UK financial system. The legislative framework for UK bank authorisations is set out in the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended (FSMA 2000). The FSMA 2000 lists the statutory objectives of the PRA and the FCA. The PRA's principal objective is to promote

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