French Monetary and Financial Code
In forceI. - The rules governing access by payment service providers to the payment systems referred to in Article L. 330-3 must be objective, non-discriminatory and proportionate.
These rules must make it possible to prevent specific risks, such as settlement risk, operational risk and business risk, and to protect the financial and operational stability of payment systems. They must not impede access to these payment systems beyond what is necessary in the light of these requirements.
A payment system may not impose on payment service providers, payment service users or other payment systems any of the following requirements:
(a) rules restricting their participation in other payment systems ;
(b) rules discriminating between payment service providers as regards the rights, obligations and benefits of participants; or
(c) restrictions based on corporate form.
II. - The provisions mentioned in I are not applicable to :
a) Interbank settlement systems as defined in Article L. 330-1 ;
b) Payment systems composed exclusively of payment service providers belonging to a group within the meaning of h) of Article L. 133-4;
c) Payment systems managed by a single payment service provider, in the form of a single entity or entities belonging to the same group, which acts or may act as a payment service provider for both the payer and the payee, and which is solely responsible for managing the system.
III. - Where a participant in a payment system defined in Article L. 330-1 allows a payment service provider that is not a participant in the system to transmit transfer orders via that system, that participant shall offer the same possibility, on request, in an objective, proportionate and non-discriminatory manner, to other payment service providers, in accordance with I.
The participant shall inform the requesting payment service provider of the reasons for any refusal.
