2.—In this Act—

“the Act of 1927” means the Currency Act, 1927;

“the Act of 1942” means the Central Bank Act, 1942;

F1[“Amsterdam Treaty” means the treaty signed in Amsterdam on 2 October 1997 amending the Treaty on European Union;

“associated company”, in relation to the holder of a licence, means a company in respect of which—

(a) not less than 20 per cent of the nominal value of the company's equity share capital is held by the company, or

(b) not less than 20 per cent of shares carrying voting rights (other than voting rights that arise only in particular circumstances) are so held;]

F2[ “the Bank” means the Central Bank F3[…] of Ireland;]

“banker's licence” means a licence issued under section 47 of the Act of 1942, and a reference in any statute or instrument under statute to a banker's licence shall be construed as including a reference to a licence;

F4[ “banking business” in relation to a person, means any business that consists of or includes—

(a) receiving money on the person’s own account from members of the public either on deposit or as repayable funds, and

(b) the granting of credits on own account,

but does not include such a business in so far as the business consists of or includes—

(i) receiving money on deposit by a trader either from employees of the trader in relation to the trader’s business, or from customers of the trader in the normal course of the trader’s business,

(ii) receiving money in respect of leasing or selling goods under a hire-purchase agreement, a leasing agreement or credit-sale agreement,

(iii) receiving money as security or collateral or as a bond for the repayment of a debt or the performance of a contract related to goods or services,

(iv) receiving money accepted by way of advance or part payment under a contract for the sale, hire or other provision of goods or services, and repayable only in the event that the goods or services are not in fact sold, hired or otherwise provided,

(v) receiving money solely as a premium in respect of the issue or renewal of a life assurance policy issued by a holder of an authorisation under the European Communities (Life Assurance) Regulations 1984 (S.I. No. 57 of 1984),

(vi) receiving money accepted as a contribution within the meaning of the Pensions Acts,

(vii) receiving money where it can be shown that—

(I) no part of the business activities of the person receiving the money or of any other person is financed wholly or substantially out of those funds, and

(II) those funds are, in the normal course of business, accepted only on a casual or incidental basis,

or

(viii) receiving money under financial contracts (within the meaning of the Netting of Financial Contracts Act 1995 (No. 25 of 1995)) (which may include the acceptance of collateral);]

F5[“Capital Requirements Directive” means Directive 2013/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013¹ on access to the activity of credit institutions and the prudential supervision of credit institutions and investment firms, amending Directive 2002/87/EC and repealing Directives 2006/48/EC and 2006/49/EC as amended by—

(a) Directive 2014/17/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 February 2014² on credit agreements for consumers relating to residential immovable property and amending Directives 2008/48/EC and 2013/36/EU and Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010,

(b) Directive 2014/59/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014³ establishing a framework for the recovery and resolution of credit institutions and investment firms and amending Council Directive 82/891/EEC, and Directives 2001/24/EC, 2002/47/EC, 2004/25/EC, 2005/56/EC, 2007/36/EC, 2011/35/EU, 2012/30/EU and 2013/36/EU, and Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 648/2012, of the European Parliament and of the Council,

(c) Directive (EU) 2015/2366 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015⁴ on payment services in the internal market, amending Directives 2002/65/EC, 2009/110/EC and 2013/36/EU and Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010, and repealing Directive 2007/64/EC,

(d) Directive (EU) 2018/843 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018⁵ amending Directive (EU) 2015/849 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, and amending Directives 2009/138/EC and 2013/36/EU,

(e) Directive (EU) 2019/878 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2019⁶ amending Directive 2013/36/EU as regards exempted entities, financial holding companies, mixed financial holding companies, remuneration, supervisory measures and powers and capital conservation F6[measures,]

(f) Directive (EU) 2019/2034 of the European Parliament and Council of 27 November 2019⁷ on the prudential supervision of investment firms and amending Directives 2002/87/EC, 2009/65/EC, 2011/61/EU, 2013/36/EU, 2014/59/EU and F6[2014/65/EU,]]

F7[(g) Directive (EU) 2021/338 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2021⁸ amending Directive 2014/65/EU as regards information requirements, product governance and position limits, and Directives 2013/36/EU and (EU) 2019/878 as regards their application to investment firms, to help the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis;]

F8[“Capital Requirements Regulation” means Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 9 on prudential requirements for credit institutions and investment firms and amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012, as amended by—

(a) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/62 of 10 October 2014¹⁰ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the leverage ratio,

(b) Regulation (EU) 2016/1014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2016¹¹ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 as regards exemptions for commodity dealers,

(c) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/2188 of 11 August 2017¹² amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the waiver on own funds requirements for certain covered bonds,

(d) Regulation (EU) 2017/2395 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017¹³ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 as regards transitional arrangements for mitigating the impact of the introduction of IFRS 9 on own funds and for the large exposures treatment of certain public sector exposures denominated in the domestic currency of any Member State,

(e) Regulation (EU) 2017/2401 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017¹⁴ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 on prudential requirements for credit institutions and investment firms,

(f) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/405 of 21 November 2017¹⁵ correcting certain language versions of Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council on prudential requirements for credit institutions and investment firms and amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012,

(g) Regulation (EU) 2019/630 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 April 2019¹⁶ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 as regards minimum loss coverage for non-performing exposures,

(h) Regulation (EU) 2019/876 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2019¹⁷ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 as regards the leverage ratio, the net stable funding ratio, requirements for own funds and eligible liabilities, counterparty credit risk, market risk, exposures to central counterparties, exposures to collective investment undertakings, large exposures, reporting and disclosure requirements, and Regulation (EU) No 648/2012,

(i) Regulation (EU) 2019/2033 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019¹⁸ on the prudential requirements of investment firms and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 575/2013, (EU) No 600/2014 and (EU) No 806/2014,

(j) Regulation (EU) 2020/873 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2020¹⁹ amending Regulations (EU) No 575/2013 and (EU) 2019/876 as regards certain adjustments in response to the COVID-19 pandemic,

(k) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/424 of 17 December 2019²⁰ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the alternative standardised approach for market risk,

(l) Regulation (EU) 2021/558 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2021²¹ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 as regards adjustments to the securitisation framework to support the economic recovery in response to the COVID-19 crisis,

(m) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/1043 of 24 June 2021²² on the extension of the transitional provisions related to own funds requirements for exposures to central counterparties set out in Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council,

(n) Regulation (EU) 2022/2036 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022²³ amending Regulation (EU) No. 575/2013 and Directive 2014/59/EU as regards the prudential treatment of global systemically important institutions with a multiple-point-of entry resolution strategy and methods for the indirect subscription of instruments eligible for meeting the minimum requirement for own funds and eligible liabilities,

(o) Regulation (EU) 2023/2869 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2023²⁴ amending certain Regulations as regards the establishment and functioning of the European single access point,

(p) Regulation (EU) 2024/1623 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2024²⁵ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 as regards requirements for credit risk, credit valuation adjustment risk, operational risk, market risk and the output floor, and

(q) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/2795 of 24 July 2024²⁶ amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the date of application of the own funds requirements for market risk;]

F9["Central Bank Acts" means the Central Bank Acts 1942 to 2001, and any enactment amending those Acts;]

“company” means a company incorporated in or outside the State and includes the Bank of Ireland;

F10[“the Court” means, except where the context otherwise requires, the High Court;]

F11[“credit institution” means an undertaking (including an electronic money institution (within the meaning of the European Communities (Electronic Money) Regulations 2002 (S.I. No. 221 of 2002)), but not a credit union or friendly society) whose business consists of, or includes—

(a) receiving deposits or other repayable funds from the public, and

(b) granting credit on its own account;]

F12[“ECB” means the European Central Bank;]

F13[“European Banking Authority” means the authority established pursuant to Regulation (EU) No. 1093/2010 ²⁷;]

F14[“European Banking Committee” means the committee established pursuant to Commission Decision 2004/10/EC²⁸;]

F1[“ESCB Statute” means the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank as set out in Protocol (No. 3) (annexed by the Treaty on European Union done at Maastricht on 7 February 1992) to the Rome Treaty;

“functions”, in relation to the Bank, means the functions and duties imposed on the Bank by or under an enactment;]

F15[“general fund” means the fund to which section 63 of the Currency Act, 1927, related and which continues to be kept by the Bank by virtue of section 23 of the Central Bank Act, 1989;

“gold bullion” includes any gold coins other than gold coins which are for the time being legal tender in the State;

“issue”, when used in relation to legal tender notes, includes the re-issue of any such note which has ceased to be outstanding;

“legal tender note” means a legal tender note provided and issued under and in accordance with the Central Bank Acts, 1942 to 1989, and any other enactment amending or extending those Acts or under any Act repealed by the Central Bank Act, 1989;]

“holder”, in relation to a licence, means the person to whom a licence is granted;

F1[“holding company” has the meaning given by section 2 of the Central Bank Act 1942;]

“investment trust company” means a company whose main business consists of the investment of its funds in securities;

F1[“legal practitioner” means a barrister or solicitor;]

F16[ “licence” means—

(a) an authorisation granted under the SSM Regulation on the application therefor under section 9, or

(b) a licence granted under section 9 before the commencement of the European Union (Single Supervisory Mechanism) Regulations 2014 that is deemed, in accordance with the SSM Regulation, to be an authorisation granted by the ECB under that Regulation,

for the time being in force.]

F1[“Maastricht Treaty” means the Treaty on European Union done at Maastricht on 7 February 1992;]

F17[“Markets in Financial Instruments Directive” means Directive 2014/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014²⁹, as amended by—

(a) Regulation (EU) No 909/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014³⁰ ,

(b) Directive (EU) 2016/97 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 January 2016³¹,

(c) Directive (EU) 2016/1034 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 June 2016³²,

(d) Directive (EU) 2019/2034 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019³³,

(e) Regulation (EU) 2019/2115 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019³⁴,

(f) Directive (EU) 2019/2177 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2019³⁵,

(g) Directive (EU) 2020/1504 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 October 2020³⁶, and

(h) Directive (EU) 2021/338 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2021³⁷;]

“the Minister” means the Minister for Finance;

F1[“Pensions Acts” means the Pensions Act 1990 as amended from time to time, and includes all Acts that are to be construed together with that Act as one Act;]

F1[“record” means any record of information, however compiled, recorded or stored, and includes—

(a) any book, a register and any other document containing information, and

(b) any disc, tape or other article from which information is capable of being produced in any form capable of being reproduced visually or aurally;]

F17[“Regulations of 2017” means the European Union (Markets in Financial Instruments) Regulations 2017 (S.I. No. 375 of 2017 )]

F20[…]

F1[“related body”, in relation to the holder of a licence, means—

(a) a subsidiary company of that holder, or

(b) if that holder is itself a subsidiary—

(i) its holding company, or

(ii) any other subsidiary of its holding company, or

(c) an associated company of that holder, or

(d) a partnership in which that holder has an interest, and whose business is or, at any relevant time, was in the Bank's opinion materially relevant to an inspection being carried out, or proposed to be carried out, under F18[Part 3 of the Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Act 2013];]

F19[…]

F1[“Rome Treaty” means the Treaty establishing the European Community done at Rome on 25 March 1957, as amended by the Maastricht Treaty, the Amsterdam Treaty and any other later Treaty on European Union;]

“securities” means—

(a) shares in the share capital of any body corporate or stock of any body corporate or debentures, debenture stock or bonds of any body corporate, whether constituting a charge on the assets of the body or not, or rights or interests (described whether as units or otherwise) in any such shares, stock, debentures, debenture stock or bonds,

(b) securities of the Government or the government of any country or territory outside the State, or

(c) rights (whether actual or contingent) in respect of money lent to, or deposited with, any industrial and provident society, friendly society or building society,

and includes rights or interests (described whether as units or otherwise) which may be acquired under any unit trust scheme under which all property for the time being subject to any trust or other arrangement created or made in pursuance of the scheme consists of such securities as are mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of this definition;

F12[“SSM Regulation” means Council Regulation (EU) No. 1024/2013 of 15 October 2013³⁸ conferring specific tasks on the European Central Bank concerning policies relating to the prudential supervision of credit institutions;]

F1[“subsidiary company” has the meaning given by section 2 of the Central Bank Act 1942;]

“unit trust scheme” means any arrangements made for the purpose, or having the effect, of providing facilities for the participation by the public, as beneficiaries under a trust or otherwise, in profits or income arising from the acquisition, holding, management or disposal of securities or any other property whatsoever and a reference in this Act to a manager under a unit trust scheme shall be construed as a reference to the person in whom is vested the powers of management relating to property for the time being subject to any trust or other arrangement created or made in pursuance of the scheme.

F21[(1A) F22[In this Act, “competent authority”, “financial holding company”, “group”, “insurance undertaking”, “investment firm”, “management body”, “mixed financial holding company”, “own funds”, “parent undertaking”, and “qualifying holding” each has the meaning assigned to it by Regulation 3 of the European Union (Capital Requirements) Regulations 2014.]]

F23[(2) F24[…]]