Notice No. 3/GBM/2023, of August 10 – Regulation for the Exercise of Non-Banking Agent Activity

SUMÁRIO
A V I S O
The matter to be published in the «Boletim da República» must be sent as a duly authenticated copy, one for each subject matter, containing the necessary indications for this purpose, along with the following endorsement, signed and authenticated:
For publication in the «Boletim da República».
IMPRENSA NACIONAL DE MOÇAMBIQUE, E. P.
Supreme Court:
Order:
Determines the creation and commencement of operation of the 4th section at the Nampula Court of Appeal; the 1st appeal section at the Manica Provincial Judicial Court; the 6th and 7th sections at the Manica Provincial Judicial Court; the 5th section at the Chimoio City Judicial Court, Manica Province; and the 2nd section at the Sussundenga District Judicial Court, Manica Province. Bank of Mozambique:
Notice No. 3/GBM/2023:
Approves Regulation for the Exercise of Non-Banking Agent Activity.
Thursday, August 10, 2023 | SERIES I — Number 154

BANCO DE MOÇAMBIQUE
Aviso n.º 3/GBM/2023 de 10 de Agosto
Given the need to establish a regulatory framework regarding the activity of agents for payment service providers, the Bank of Mozambique, exercising the powers conferred by paragraph b) of paragraph 4 of Article 10 of the Regulation of the Law on Credit Institutions and Financial Societies, approved by Decree No. 56/2004 of December 10, with amendments introduced by Decree No. 30/2014 of June 5, and Article 6 of Decree No. 99/2019 of December 31, Legal Regime for Payment Service Companies, determines:

1. The Regulation for the Exercise of Non-Banking Agent Activity is approved, forming an integral part of this Notice.
2. Entities covered by the Regulation must comply within six months, counting from the date of entry into force of this Notice.
3. Existing contracts remain in effect under the agreed terms, except those that cannot be executed due to mandatory provisions of the Regulation.
4. This Notice enters into force on the date of its publication.

Doubts regarding the interpretation and application of this Notice must be submitted to the Regulation and Licensing Department of the Bank of Mozambique. Bank of Mozambique, in Maputo, June 1, 2023. — The Governor, Rogério Lucas Zandamela.

TRIBUNAL SUPREMO
Despacho
Given the need to effectively address the growing procedural demand through specialization, exercising the powers attributed to me under Articles 30, 31, and 60 of Law No. 24/2007 of August 20, the Judiciary Organization Act, with amendments introduced by Law No. 24/2014 of September 23 and Law No. 11/2018 of October 3, and upon proposal of the Superior Council of the Judicial Magistracy, I determine the following:

1. Creation and commencement of operation of the following sections:
   a) 4th section at the Nampula Court of Appeal; b) 1st appeal section at the Manica Provincial Judicial Court; c) 6th and 7th sections at the Manica Provincial Judicial Court; d) 5th section at the Chimoio City Judicial Court, Manica Province; e) 2nd section at the Sussundenga District Judicial Court, Manica Province.

2. Specialization of the following sections:
   a) 4th section of the Nampula Court of Appeal, in criminal matters; b) 6th section of the Manica Provincial Judicial Court, in Family and Minors matters; c) 7th section of the Manica Provincial Judicial Court, in Police (Transgressions) matters; d) 5th section of the Chimoio City Judicial Court, Manica Province, in criminal matters; e) 1st section of the Sussundenga District Judicial Court, Manica Province, in criminal matters; f) 2nd section of the Sussundenga District Judicial Court, Manica Province, in civil matters.

3. Transformation of the 5th section of the Manica Provincial Judicial Court into a Family and Minors section.

This order takes immediate effect.
Supreme Court, in Maputo, July 20, 2023. — The President, Adelino Manuel Muchanga.

1780 | SERIES I — NUMBER 154
Regulation for the Exercise of Non-Banking Agent Activity

CAPÍTULO I
Disposições gerais
Article 1
Object
This Regulation establishes the terms and conditions for payment service companies to exercise their activity, within the national territory, through non-banking agents.

Article 2
Scope
This Regulation applies to payment service companies.

Article 3
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation, the following are understood:
a) Non-banking agent or agent – a single or collective entity, accredited and contracted by the contracting institution to provide specific services and assistance to clients; b) Client – a single or collective, public or private person who uses or intends to use any financial product or service made available or marketed by the contracting institution through the agent; c) Businessperson – a single or collective person who professionally and habitually exercises business activity, as defined by the Commercial Code; d) Payment service companies – financial societies authorized to provide payment services, as defined by Law No. 20/2020 of December 31, the Law on Credit Institutions and Financial Societies; e) Field team – personnel contracted by the contracting institution who ensure monitoring, training, and assistance to agents; f) Support team – personnel contracted by the contracting institution to provide remote assistance to the field team; g) Contracting institution – a payment service company that contracts an agent; and h) Super-agent – an accredited and contracted agent by the contracting institution to recruit, manage, or provide assistance to agents, in order to supply electronic and physical currency to ensure that the agent continues to serve the client, primarily through withdrawals and cash delivery for conversion into electronic currency.

CAPÍTULO II
Acesso e condições da actividade de agente
Article 4
Liability

1. The agent acts on behalf of and under the guidance of the contracting institution, which is responsible for all its actions within the scope of the activities for which it was contracted.
2. The contracting institution must guarantee, among others, the integrity, reliability, security, and confidentiality of transactions carried out, as well as compliance with applicable regulations governing the activity performed by the agent.

Article 5
Eligible Entities

1. The contracting institution may contract, to exercise agent activity, single or collective, public or private entities that carry out commercial or social activities, namely:
   a) Public or private educational institutions; b) Fixed or mobile telecommunications operators; c) Postal sector operators; d) Savings and loan organizations; e) Non-governmental organizations; f) Associations and foundations; g) Individual businesspersons; and h) Business companies.
2. Public entities wishing to act as agents must obtain authorization, consent, or non-objection from the supervising authority, unless legally exempted.
3. Emancipated minors may act as agents.
4. The governing body of the contracting institution must adopt an agent acceptance policy that, among other elements, addresses associated risks.

Article 6
Requirements and Eligibility Criteria for Agents

1. The contracting institution must, prior to contracting, evaluate the single or collective entity to be contracted as an agent.
2. The following requirements must be observed for the exercise of agent activity:
   a) when it concerns a single person or individual businessperson, they must possess:
   i. mobile or fixed commercial establishment;
   ii. investment capacity of at least ten thousand meticais;
   iii. identification document;
   iv. Unique Tax Identification Number (NUIT);
   v. commercial license or permit, if applicable; and
   vi. suitability.
   b) when it concerns a collective entity, it must possess, if applicable:
   i. fixed commercial establishment;
   ii. investment capacity of at least twenty-five thousand meticais;
   iii. license or permit;
   iv. commercial or administrative registration certificate;
   v. Unique Tax Identification Number (NUIT);
   vi. minutes of the general assembly with representatives' names;
   vii. shareholder structure or composition of founders;
   viii. identification of beneficial owners; and
   ix. suitability of founding members, owners, managers, partners, and governing body members.
3. Among other relevant circumstances for the purposes of paragraphs a) and b) above, indicators of lack of suitability include if the person:
   a) has been declared by national or foreign judgment bankrupt or insolvent, or responsible for the bankruptcy or insolvency of a company they dominate or have administered, directed, or managed; b) has been convicted, domestically or internationally, for economic, patrimonial, or financial crimes; c) has been convicted, domestically or internationally, for breaches of legal or regulatory rules governing credit institutions and financial societies, insurance activity, and the securities market, when the severity or recurrence of such breaches justifies it; and d) holds a defaulted credit or has records in the register of issuers of checks without provision.
4. The following single or collective entities are not eligible as agents:
   a) those conducting illegal activities; b) those sanctioned in financial matters or regarding money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction financing; and c) others determined by the Bank of Mozambique on a case-by-case basis.
5. Investment capacity may be assessed through bank statements, business volume, or other accounting and financial information requested by the contracting institution.

Article 7
Activities of Agents

1. The agent, according to the category of the contracting institution, may only perform the following activities:
   a) receipt and withdrawal of cash resulting from electronic or payment currency conversion, within limits established by the contracting institution; b) opening of electronic or payment currency accounts; c) remittance and receipt of funds; d) payment initiation services; and e) other operations previously authorized by the Bank of Mozambique.
2. The limits referred to in paragraph a) above must be established considering the risk profile associated with transaction volume and the agent's security conditions.
3. Agents are prohibited from:
   a) charging any fees, commissions, or charges related to the exercise of activity that are not provided for in the contracting institution's price list; b) performing any operation that is not real-time and without providing the respective receipt, even if electronic; and c) sub-delegating the exercise of activities or subcontracting agents.
4. The contracting institution and the agent may establish, in writing, the prohibition or limitation of some activities listed in paragraph 1 of this article.
5. The activities performed by agents may be assisted by field teams, as established by the contracting institution.

Article 8
Super-Agents

1. The contracting institution may contract super-agents to recruit, provide technical assistance, and manage agent liquidity and other aspects agreed upon or necessary under this Regulation.
2. The recruitment of agents by super-agents must comply with Article 9 of this Regulation.
3. Super-agents must possess an investment capacity of at least one hundred thousand meticais.
4. Single persons cannot be super-agents.

CAPÍTULO III
Contratação de agentes
Article 9
Norms Regarding the Use of Agents
The contracting institution must ensure that activity provision through agents complies with internal norms and policies, approved by the respective governing body or equivalent, containing at minimum procedures regarding:
a) identification and verification duties of the client; and b) training actions to be provided before the agent's activities commence, covering matters on:
i. client identification and verification by the agent;
ii. duty of confidentiality;
iii. procedures for preventing and combating money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction financing;
iv. information and consumer protection duties;
v. mechanisms for detecting operational fraud;
vi. conservation, maintenance, and identification of Metical banknote and coin characteristics;
vii. client data privacy;
viii. resolution of technological issues; and
ix. customer service and complaint handling.

Article 10
Technology Used in Agent Activities

1. The contracting institution must ensure that the agent has adequate technological equipment to carry out transactions.
2. The technological equipment must have conditions to perform real-time transactions.

Article 11
Minimum Contract Clauses

1. The contract between the contracting institution and the agent must be concluded in writing.
2. The contract must contain, at minimum, clauses regarding the following aspects:
   a) activities to be performed by the agent; b) rights and obligations of the parties; c) agent remuneration, including respective fixation conditions; d) statement that service provision by the agent is subject to this Regulation's norms and other applicable legislation for the contracting institution; and e) reference that the Bank of Mozambique must be granted full and timely access to control systems, documents, reports, archives, and agents' staff related to this activity, whenever necessary and applicable.
3. The contracting institution must keep a copy of the contract concluded with each agent available for verification by the Bank of Mozambique.

1782 | SERIES I — NUMBER 154
Article 12
Non-Exclusivity of Contract

1. The contract concluded between the contracting institution and the agent must not be exclusive.
2. An agent may provide services to multiple contracting institutions, provided that the contracts are separate.
3. For the purposes of the preceding paragraph, contracting institutions must ensure that the agent has the capacity to manage transactions from different institutions, guaranteeing, among other aspects, the organization of bookkeeping and liquidity resulting from the agent's economic activity.

Article 13
Duty of Confidentiality

1. The agent is subject to the duty of confidentiality, even after the termination of the contract with the contracting institution.
2. The agent must not disclose or use information regarding facts or elements concerning the life of the contracting institution or its relations with its clients, knowledge of which arises exclusively from the exercise of their agent activity.
3. The duty of confidentiality applies, in particular, to client names, payment or electronic currency accounts, their movements, as well as all financial information and operations obtained within the agent-client relationship.

Article 14
Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing, and Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction Financing

1. The agent must conduct its activity in accordance with legislation concerning the prevention of money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction financing.
2. The contracting institution must ensure that the agent adopts appropriate measures to identify, assess, monitor, and control money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction financing risks, as well as possess or develop necessary information tools or systems to mitigate these risks.

Article 15
Termination of Contract

1. The contract between the contracting institution and the agent may be terminated by either party's initiative.
2. The contract must be terminated whenever any of the following causes or situations occur:
   a) systematic non-compliance with one party's obligations compromising the essence or maintenance of the legal relationship; b) cessation of main activity, judicial recovery, insolvency, or dissolution of the agent, where applicable; c) dissolution of the contracting institution; d) death, interdiction, or disqualification of the agent; e) others established in the contract, provided they are legally permitted.
3. The Bank of Mozambique may determine the cessation of the agent's activity due to violations of laws and regulations governing payment service companies.

CAPÍTULO IV
Protecção do consumidor
Article 16
Client Data Protection
The contracting institution must guarantee the protection of client data received by the agent, as well as compliance with all legal prerequisites to which they are bound.

Article 17
Handling of Complaints and Information Requests The contracting institution must implement adequate and efficient systems for managing the handling of client complaints and information requests made through the agent.

Article 18
Duty to Inform and Identify the Agent

1. The contracting institution must ensure that in all agencies, in a highly visible location, as well as on the website through direct and easily identifiable access, information about its agents is displayed.
2. The contracting institution must ensure that the agent publicly discloses, in a visible manner, its status as an agent and the name of the contracting institution.
3. The contracting institution must know and monitor the location of its agents and, where applicable, guarantee updated georeferenced information.
4. The contracting institution must maintain a list of contracted agents, including super-agents, as well as those whose contractual relationship has ended.

Article 19
Duty to Inform the Bank of Mozambique
The contracting institution must submit, quarterly, to the Bank of Mozambique, a list of agents as established by Circular, without prejudice to the submission of statistical information.

CAPÍTULO V
Disposição final
Article 20
Sanction Regime
Violation of the provisions of this Regulation constitutes a regulatory offense punishable under Law No. 20/2020 of December 31, the Law on Credit Institutions and Financial Societies.

Price — 20.00 MT
IMPRENSA NACIONAL DE MOÇAMBIQUE, E.P.