Cooperative forums

The Central Bank of Iceland has established cooperative forums in the fields of payment and financial market infrastructure, with the participation of representatives from financial institutions, Government authorities, and non-governmental organisations. The work done within these forums is based on the Bank’s objectives concerning financial market infrastructure – i.e., that it must be secure, effective, efficient, and accessible – and is intended to promote sound and secure infrastructure that meets the needs of society. The Central Bank also places emphasis on promoting innovation and further development in payment intermediation.

The Payments Council is a Central Bank forum for dialogue among Government authorities and market participants on issues relating to financial market infrastructure and payments in a broad sense. Its purpose is to support policy development in Iceland, elicit points of view from market participants in Iceland, and provide support for further development and innovation in the field of payments.

The Payments Council’s work shall focus on security, efficacy, and efficiency throughout the payment value chain. The Council may establish work groups tasked with discussing and analysing specific topics. It is also authorised to make proposals on specific topics to the Central Bank, market participants and other entities.
The Governor chairs the Payments Council, which generally meets twice a year. The following are currently members of the Council:

• Ministry of Industries
• Icelandic Fintech
• Ministry of Culture and Business Affairs
• Consumers' Association of Iceland
• Financial Market Data Centre (RB)
• Icelandic Travel Industry Association (SAF)
• Icelandic Financial Services Association (SFF)
• Federation of Icelandic Industries
• Federation of Trade and Services
• Iceland Chamber of Commerce

The Rulebook Council discusses and makes proposals to the Governor concerning issuance of rulebooks for use in Iceland; i.e., rulebooks originating in Iceland or based on international models. Rulebooks are a collection of accepted groundrules for interactions between systems. The Rulebook Council handles the preparation and issuance of rulebooks in accordance with the Governor’s decisions. It has oversight of issued rulebooks and amendments to them.

The objectives of rulebook issuance are to lay down obligations on infrastructure participants, set forth groundrules for payment systems, standardise procedures, and enhance transparency in system operations. Rulebooks are binding upon participants in relevant financial infrastructure and are intended to enhance its security and efficiency. The Rulebook Council was modelled on similar councils abroad, such as those in Europe and the Nordic region.

The following entities currently participate in the Rulebook Council:

• Arion Bank
• Íslandsbanki
• Kvika
• Landsbankinn
• Financial Market Data Centre (RB)
• Savings banks
• Central Bank of Iceland

The Central Bank issues rulebooks and publishes them on its website, together with the relevant accompanying documentation.

The Strategic Forum is a forum that focuses on the formulation of future policy on Iceland’s financial market infrastructure, with emphasis on payment intermediation infrastructure and other related infrastructure. It was established by the Central Bank in November 2021. It is intended to conduct its work with the public interest as a guiding principle.

Under the leadership of the Central Bank, the Strategic Forum focuses on shaping a vision for the future and setting priorities for the development of financial market infrastructure in Iceland, with efficiency, security, and cost-effectiveness as guiding principles. The Forum also keeps abreast of international developments in financial market infrastructure and of innovations that could be relevant in Iceland.

The Strategic Forum receives and evaluates ideas or proposals for new cooperation among market agents in the field of financial market infrastructure. It only considers projects that the Central Bank deems necessary and consistent with its legally mandated role, or that are conceived in the interest of more than one systemically important bank.

The following entities currently participate in the Strategic Forum:

• Arion Bank
• Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs
• Íslandsbanki
• Kvika
• Landsbankinn
• Financial Market Data Centre (RB)
• Savings banks
• Central Bank of Iceland

The Financial Infrastructure Operational Resilience Forum (SURF) is intended to develop a common approach to measures aimed at strengthening the resilience of financial infrastructures to operational disruptions and to put such measures into practice. The Forum also seeks to strengthen the resilience of financial infrastructures in Iceland to all types of operational disruptions and to provide a platform for the exchange of information and knowledge on operational resilience. Further information on SURF is available here: Resilience (SURF).