2.— (1) In this Act—

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

“Act of 1963” means the Companies Act 1963;

“Act of 1971” means the Central Bank Act 1971;

“Act of 2008” means the Credit Institutions (Financial Support) Act 2008;

“Act of 2010” means the Credit Institutions (Stabilisation) Act 2010;

“articles of association” includes—

(a) in the case of a credit institution that is established by charter, its bye-laws,

(b) in the case of a credit institution that is a credit union, its rules, and

(c) in the case of a credit institution that is a building society, its rules;

“Assessor” has the meaning given by section 36;

F1["authorised credit institution" means a credit union;]

“Bank” means the Central Bank of Ireland;

“bridge-bank” has the meaning given by section 17;

“building society” means a building society incorporated under the Building Societies Act 1989, or deemed pursuant to section 124(2) of that Act to be so incorporated;

“charge” includes—

(a) a mortgage, judgment mortgage, charge, lien, pledge, hypothecation or other security interest or encumbrance or collateral in or over any property,

(b) an assignment by way of security, and

(c) an undertaking or agreement by any person (including a solicitor) to give or create a security interest in property;

“CIWUD Directive” means Directive 2001/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 April 2001 ¹;

“Court” means the High Court;

F1["credit institution" means a credit union;]

“credit union” means a society registered as such under the Credit Union Act 1997, including a society deemed to be so registered by virtue of section 5(3) of that Act;

F2["designated credit institution" means—

(a) a bank authorised (or deemed to be authorised by the European Central Bank on application therefor) under section 9 of the Act of 1971,

(b) a building society authorised (or deemed to be authorised by the European Central Bank on application therefor) under section 17 of the Building Societies Act (No. 17 of 1989), or

(c) a credit union;]

“enactment” means—

(a) an Act of the Oireachtas,

(b) a statute that was in force in Saorstát Éireann immediately before the date of the coming into operation of the Constitution and that continues in force by virtue of Article 50 of the Constitution, or

(c) an instrument made under—

(i) an Act of the Oireachtas, or

(ii) a statute referred to in paragraph (b);

“functions” includes powers, duties, rights and entitlements, and references to the performance of a function include reference to—

(a) in relation to a power, the exercise of the power,

(b) in relation to a duty, the performance of the duty, and

(c) in relation to a right or entitlement, the exercise of the right or entitlement;

“Fund” has the meaning given by section 10;

“Governor” means the Governor of the Bank;

“holding company” means a holding company (within the meaning of section 155 of the Act of 1963) or a parent undertaking (within the meaning given by the European Communities (Companies: Group Accounts) Regulations 1992 (S.I. No. 201 of 1992));

“interest”, in relation to an asset or liability, means—

(a) the whole or any part or fraction of the asset or liability,

(b) any other estate in, right or title to, or interest in the asset or liability (whether legal or beneficial), or

(c) any interest, other than a legal or beneficial interest, in the asset or liability;

“intervention conditions” shall be construed in accordance with section 9;

“memorandum of association” includes the charter of a credit institution that is established by charter;

“Minister” means the Minister for Finance;

F2["recognised credit institution" means a person authorised in the State to accept deposits or other repayable funds from the public and to grant credit on its own account;]

“regulated market” has the same meaning as in the European Communities (Markets in Financial Instruments) Regulations 2007 (S.I. No. 60 of 2007);

“Regulations of 2011” means the European Communities (Reorganisation and Winding-Up of Credit Institutions) Regulations 2011 (S.I. No. 48 of 2011);

“security” includes—

(a) a charge,

(b) a mortgage,

(c) a guarantee, indemnity or surety,

(d) a right of set-off,

(e) a debenture,

(f) a bill of exchange,

(g) a promissory note,

(h) collateral,

(i) any other means of securing—

(i) the payment of a debt, or

(ii) the discharge or performance of an obligation or liability,

and

(j) any other agreement or arrangement having a similar effect;

“special management order” has the meaning given by section 58;

“special manager” means a person appointed as such by a special management order;

“subsidiary” means a subsidiary (within the meaning given by section 155 of the Act of 1963) or a subsidiary undertaking (within the meaning given by the European Communities (Companies: Group Accounts) Regulations 1992 (S.I. No. 201 of 1992));

“transfer order” has the meaning given by section 30.

(2) A reference in this Act to an agreement is a reference to—

(a) an instrument (however described) that creates or purports to create an obligation, whether made in writing or under seal, including but not limited to an instrument described as an arrangement, undertaking, scheme, licence, security or obligation, or

(b) an oral agreement that creates or purports to create an obligation, including but not limited to an obligation of any kind referred to in paragraph (a).

(3) In this Act—

(a) a reference to an asset includes an interest in an asset, and

(b) a reference to a liability includes an interest in a liability.

(4) A reference in this Act to disposing of an asset or liability includes selling or otherwise transferring, and creating a security or equitable interest in, the asset or liability.

(5) For the purposes of subsection (4) “transfer” includes—

(a) any form of legal or beneficial transfer, including a vesting by operation of law,

(b) a synthetic transfer,

(c) a risk transfer,

(d) a novation,

(e) an assignment,

(f) an assumption,

(g) sub-participation,

(h) sub-contracting, and

(i) any other form of transfer, acquisition, assumption or vesting recognised by law.

(6) A reference in this Act to the preservation of the financial position of an authorised credit institution shall be taken to include the need for that credit institution to comply with such one or more of the following as apply to it—

(a) an order made in relation to it under this Act,

(b) a requirement imposed on it under section 22,

(c) the European Communities (Capital Adequacy of Credit Institutions) Regulations 2006 (S.I. No. 661 of 2006).