# EC

> Credit Institution (Établissement de Crédit)

The classic 'bank' in the regulatory sense: the only status allowed to take deposits from the public and grant credit. Licensed by the ACPR + ECB for the largest ones.

_Category: acteur_

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## Definition

An **EC** (_Établissement de Crédit_, credit institution) is, under European law, the only status allowed to take deposits from the public _and_ grant credit on its own account.

This is what is commonly known as a bank — the broadest and most heavily regulated status in the ecosystem. In France, the licence is issued by the ACPR, and by the ECB for significant institutions (SSM).

## The "banking monopoly" in plain terms

Codified in Article L.511-5 of the Monetary and Financial Code, it rests on two pillars:

- **Receiving repayable funds from the public**: a non-EC cannot offer a savings passbook, a remunerated current account, or any product where the customer "deposits" money recoverable on demand.
- **Granting credit on a regular basis**: lending regularly requires the EC licence (with limited exceptions: inter-company credit, syndicated lending).

Every other status (EP, EME, IOBSP) derives from or works around this monopoly by specialising.

## EC vs EP vs EME

| | EC | EP | EME |
|---|---|---|---|
| Takes deposits | Yes | No (ring-fences client funds) | No (issues electronic money) |
| Grants credit | Yes | Limited (tied to a payment service) | No |
| Min. capital | €5M | €20K to €125K | €350K |
| Regulator | ACPR + ECB | ACPR | ACPR |
| Examples | BNP, Revolut Bank | Qonto, Bridge, Fintecture | Treezor, Swan, Sumeria |

## What an EC can do (and others cannot)

- **Collect savings** (Livret A, LDDS, term deposits, remunerated current account).
- **Grant any type of credit**: consumer, mortgage, revolving, business, leasing.
- **Issue credit cards** in the strict sense (deferred > 30 days, revolving).
- **Join payment systems directly**: TARGET2, STEP2, CORE(FR), TIPS.
- **Benefit from the deposit guarantee** (FGDR, up to €100,000 per customer per institution).

## What an EC is not

- **Not synonymous with a universal bank**: an EC can be highly specialised (financing, single-line lending, private banking).
- **Not the only one to manage accounts**: EPs and EMEs also manage payment accounts, without the deposit/credit layer.
- **Not necessarily supervised by the ECB**: only significant ECs (~€20bn in assets) are, the others stay with the ACPR.
- **Not fixed in stone**: an EP that wants to lend at scale ends up applying for the EC licence.

## In the PSD2 ecosystem

As soon as it holds payment accounts, an EC is by definition an ASPSP: it therefore bears all the DSP2 obligations (XS2A API, SCA, eIDAS certificates) on top of its banking obligations (CRR/CRD, prudential ratios, enhanced AML-CFT).

```mermaid
flowchart TB
    EC["EC — Credit Institution"]

    subgraph SERVICES["Exclusive services (monopoly)"]
        DEPOTS["Deposits from the public<br/>(passbooks, current accounts)"]
        CREDIT["Granting credit<br/>(consumer, mortgage, business)"]
    end

    subgraph DSP2["DSP2 obligations (as an ASPSP)"]
        API["XS2A API"]
        SCA["SCA"]
        EIDAS["eIDAS certificates"]
    end

    SUPER["Supervision<br/>ACPR + ECB (SSM)"]
    GARANTIE["Deposit guarantee<br/>(FGDR €100K)"]

    EC --> DEPOTS
    EC --> CREDIT
    EC --> DSP2
    EC --> SUPER
    EC --> GARANTIE
```

## Concrete examples

- **Traditional banks**: BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole, Société Générale, BPCE, Crédit Mutuel, La Banque Postale — all ECs, supervised by the ECB for the largest ones.
- **Neobanks licensed as ECs**: Revolut Bank (Lithuania), N26 (Germany), Bunq (Netherlands), Boursorama (France) — they can remunerate deposits and lend.
- **Specialised ECs**: My Money Bank, Younited, Cofidis, Floa Bank — financing and consumer credit, without a branch network.
- **Non-EC neobanks**: Lydia (EP then EME via Sumeria), Qonto (EP), Shine (EP) — they go through partners to remunerate or lend.
- **EP → EC transition**: the classic trajectory of a fintech that wants to bring credit in-house. Qonto is targeting the EC licence — several million euros and 18 to 24 months of process.
- **Cost of the status**: minimum capital of €5M, CRR/CRD ratios (CET1 > 4.5%, total ratio > 8%), quarterly COREP/FINREP reporting — far heavier than an EP.

## Sources

- [Article L.511-5 du Code monétaire et financier](https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/article_lc/LEGIARTI000038509624) — Légifrance
- [Délivrance et retrait des agréments — Établissements de crédit](https://acpr.banque-france.fr/autoriser/procedures-secteur-banque/etablissements-de-credit) — ACPR / Banque de France

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Source: https://openfinanceguide.com/en/glossary/ec