Corporate | UREG | Assets Safeguarding

Purpose

This Policy establishes the principles, operational procedures and control mechanisms designed to ensure the protection of funds received from users for the issuance of electronic money and the provision of payment services by UNNAX REGULATORY SERVICES EDE, S.L.U. (“UNNAX” or the “Entity”).

Compliance with this Policy ensures that clients’ funds are segregated from the Entity’s own assets and protected against claims from third-party creditors, in accordance with Law 21/2011 of 26 July on electronic money and Royal Decree-Law 19/2018 of 23 November on payment services, as well as their implementing regulations.

Scope

This document applies to third-party funds managed by UNNAX in its capacity as an electronic money institution.

Definitions

  1. Client: The legal entity with which UNNAX maintains a contractual relationship and to which it provides electronic money and payment services.
  2. Electronic Money: Monetary value stored electronically or magnetically representing a claim on the issuer and issued upon receipt of funds for payment transactions.
  3. Safeguarded Funds: Assets received from clients or through another payment service provider for the issuance of electronic money and execution of payment transactions.
  4. Reconciliation: The cross-verification process between the Entity’s records, accounting records and statements from depositary institutions.
  5. Depositary Credit Institution: A financial institution holding UNNAX clients’ funds in custody.

Safeguarding Methodology

The Entity adopts, as its safeguarding method, the deposit of funds in segregated bank accounts (Method 1) held with authorized credit institutions.

Accordingly:

  • The designation of these accounts clearly identifies that the funds are held for the benefit of the EMI’s clients.
  • The safeguarding accounts are legally and physically separate from the Entity’s operational accounts.
  • The Entity has formally notified depositary banks of the nature of these accounts, and the depositary acknowledges that the funds are not the property of UNNAX and therefore cannot be attached or offset against debts of the Entity.

4.1 Reconciliation Procedure

To ensure that issued electronic money liabilities are adequately covered for safeguarding purposes, the Entity implements the following protocol:

  • Operational reconciliation: Verification of consistency between clients’ electronic money balances and accounting liabilities.
  • Bank reconciliation: Validation that funds deposited in safeguarding accounts are sufficient to cover outstanding liabilities.
  • Control of funds in transit: Monitoring of funds confirmed by the technical gateway that have not yet been credited due to settlement cycles.
  • Settlement validation: Verification that settlement deadlines and processed amounts comply with operational cycles.

4.2 Management of Discrepancies and Contingency Plan

If the Entity detects any discrepancy, an immediate root cause analysis will be conducted.

If insufficiency of funds is confirmed:

  • The Operations department will immediately notify the Finance department.
  • An urgent assessment will determine whether the issue is technical or represents an actual shortfall.
  • If a coverage insufficiency is confirmed, the Entity will implement corrective measures to regularize safeguarding balances within regulatory deadlines.
  • The Risk and Compliance department will supervise the resolution process and escalate material incidents to the governing bodies when necessary.

Selection and Monitoring of Depositary Institutions

The Entity maintains a due diligence policy for selecting custodian banks in order to mitigate counterparty risk.

  • The Entity selects credit institutions of recognized solvency established within the European Union.
  • The Entity maintains active relationships with at least two independent depositary institutions to ensure operational resilience.
  • The Risk and Compliance department assesses the solvency and credit rating of depositary institutions on a quarterly basis.

Depositary Credit Institutions

The list of active depositary institutions is detailed in Annex I and updated periodically by the Risk and Compliance Department.

Governance, Control and Audit

The Finance and Operations departments are responsible for executing the safeguarding process.

The Risk and Compliance department supervises reconciliations and monitors compliance with solvency ratios on a monthly basis.

Internal Audit conducts an annual review of the safeguarding system and issues a report regarding the adequacy of controls and accounting accuracy submitted to the Bank of Spain.

Client Communication

In accordance with transparency requirements, UNNAX informs its clients through service agreements and its website about the safeguarding methods used and the identity of the institutions where client funds are held.

Annex I – Register of Depositary Institutions

This Annex details the credit institutions where UNNAX currently holds safeguarded client funds. This list is dynamic and may be updated without modifying the main body of the Policy.

Credit Institution Operative Role Jurisdiction
Banco Inversis, S.A. Primary depositary Spain
Banco Alcalá, S.A. Secondary depositary Spain
CaixaBank, S.A. Other depositaries Spain