Payments and infrastructure

Electronic money issuing services

Electronic money is stored monetary value in the form of a claim against the electronic money issuer by the electronic money holder, which:

  • is in electronic form, including magnetic form,
  • is issued by the electronic money issuer on the basis of receipt of cash for the purpose of executing payment transactions, and
  • is accepted as a means of payment by a person other than the electronic money issuer.

In simple terms, electronic money may be described as an electronic surrogate for currency (banknotes and coins) that is issued by an electronic money issuer and is accepted as a means of payment by a person other than the electronic money issuer, and is intended for the purpose of electronic payment or the execution of payment transactions (and not saving). The electronic money holder may require the redemption of the issued electronic money at any time from the electronic money issuer.

In Slovenia electronic money issuance services may be provided by: (i) banks, (ii) electronic money institutions, (iii) electronic money institutions with a waiver, (iv) the Bank of Slovenia, (v) the Public Payments Administration of the Republic of Slovenia and other government bodies and local authority bodies in Slovenia.

Banks, electronic money institutions, and electronic money institutionswith a waiver established in Slovenia are required to obtain an authorisation to provide electronic money issuance services from the Bank of Slovenia in accordance with the Banking Act and the Payment Services, Services of Issuing Electronic Money and Payment Systems Act (in Slovene).

Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 on markets in crypto-assets, and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010 and (EU) No 1095/2010 and Directives 2013/36/EU and (EU) 2019/1937 (the MiCAR) deems e-money tokens to be electronic money, to which the following apply:

  • they entail a type of cryptoasset that purports to maintain a stable value by referencing the value of one official currency;
  • issuers of e-money tokens do not grant interest in relation to e-money tokens; and
  • holders of e-money tokens have a claim against the issuers of those e-money tokens.

Under the MiCAR, entities who intend to offer e-money tokens to the public or seek their admission to trading are required to first obtain an authorisation either as an electronic money institution or as a bank. Obtaining an authorisation solely for the issuance of e-money tokens is not envisaged under the MiCAR. Issuers of e-money tokens must notify Banka Slovenije at least 40 working days in advance of their intention to offer e-money tokens to the public or to seek their admission to trading. They must also notify Banka Slovenije at least 20 working days in advance of the publication of their cryptoasset white paper.

For more information about cryptoassets and Banka Slovenije’s powers in connection with the MiCAR, see the Cryptoasset FAQs.