Payment systems

Oversight of payment systems

Payment systems are key elements in economic and financial activity on both a national and international level, and therefore it is vital to ensure their smooth running. The available means to ensure this include oversight, one of the functions assigned to the Banco de España in its Law of Autonomy, of 1 June 1994.

The main objective of oversight is to guarantee payment systems are secure and function efficiently. To this end, the Banco de España carries out certain activities using a wide range of instruments. The way oversight is developed is explained in the document "The Banco de España and the oversight of payment systems".

Although we speak of the oversight of payment systems in general, we are not just referring to TARGET2-Banco de España and the National Electronic Clearing System (SNCE) - the two payment systems that exist in Spain, but also to other elements, such as bank cards, the security of payment instruments and collaboration with other central banks for the cooperative oversight of international payment systems.

The oversight activities carried out by the Banco de España are regularly published in the Annual Report on the Oversight of Payment Systems . This report also describes any novelties that have occurred in Spanish payment systems.