In Spain, any individual or firm wishing to provide specific financial services or use certain business names must be authorised by or registered with the Banco de España.
It is therefore important to know which products are restricted to individuals or firms registered with or authorised by the Banco de España, what names they are permitted to use and the risks of dealing with unauthorised providers.
FAQs
The following products and services can only be provided by individuals or firms authorised or registered by the Banco de España:
- taking repayable funds from the public, e.g. in the form of bank accounts or deposits;
- payment services such as transfers, money remittances and card services;
- account information services;
- electronic money services, such as prepaid cards and digital wallets;
- foreign currency exchange;
- reverse mortgages regulated by Law 41/2007;
- certain crypto-asset activities, such as issuance of asset-referenced tokens (ARTs) and electronic money tokens (EMTs).
- real estate credit intermediary services, including advisory services;
- real estate lending;
- certain payment services provided by small institutions.
In addition, appraisal companies and credit institutions’ appraisal services must be certified by the Banco de España for their real estate valuations to be valid for specific purposes.
- The term “bank” or similar (e.g. “banking” or “banker”)
- The term “payment institution” or its abbreviation “PI”
- The term “electronic money institution” or its abbreviation “EMI”
- The term “specialised lending institutions” or its abbreviation “SLI”
- The term “mutual guarantee society” or its abbreviation “MGS”
You can use the Banco de España's Register of Institutions
to verify whether an individual or firm is registered and authorised to provide the services they are offering.
For individuals or firms from other European Union Member States, you can consult the respective national registers or the registers of the European Banking Authority.
Only registered individuals and firms have demonstrated their compliance with certain requirements (sufficient capital, adequate organisation and resources, etc.) and are subject to regulatory oversight.
If you engage the services of an unauthorised or unregistered individual or firm, you will not be entitled to file a complaint with the Complaints Service of the Banco de España should you be dissatisfied with their actions.
Nor will you be protected by mechanisms such as the Deposit Guarantee Fund for Credit Institutions (which guarantees up to €100,000 per account holder and institution), or by the safeguarding separated account or equivalent guarantee that payment institutions and electronic money institutions are required to maintain (to safeguard customer funds used in payment transactions or electronic money issuance).
If you suspect an individual or firm of being unauthorised to provide their services, you can report it – anonymously if you wish – through our External Whistleblowing Channel, providing any information and documentation you deem relevant.
If you feel you have suffered damages due to potentially criminal actions by unregistered institutions and/or individuals, or wish to seek financial compensation for damages incurred, you should contact law enforcement authorities or pursue legal action.