Starting from 2023, the supervision of the financial market and its participants in Latvia will be carried out by Latvijas Banka, as provided for in the Law on Latvijas Banka, coming in effect as of 1 January 2023. Pursuant to Paragraph 4 of the Transitional Provisions of the mentioned Law, Latvijas Banka is the successor of the property, financial resources, rights, and liabilities of the Financial and Capital Market Commission (FCMC).
The integration does not affect the supervisory framework and the regulations for financing the supervision, likewise the regulations previously issued by the FCMC remain in effect and financial market participants have to ensure compliance with the requirements laid down therein.
Latvijas Banka’s organisational structure
All unfinished processes related to supervision and started in 2022 will be taken over by Latvijas Banka. From 1 January 2023, Latvijas Banka’s work will be managed by the Council of Latvijas Banka, consisting of seven Members of the Council of Latvijas Banka, including the Governor of Latvijas Banka and his two Deputies. On 9 June 2022, the Saeima approved Santa Purgaile, current Chairwoman of the Financial and Capital Market Commission (FCMC), as a Deputy Governor of Latvijas Banka and Kristīne Černaja-Mežmale, Member of the Board of the FCMC, as a Member of the Council of Latvijas Banka.
Overall, next year the structure of Latvijas Banka will be supplemented by nine new departments related to the performance of supervisory and resolution functions, i. e.:
- Licensing and Sanctions Department;
- Regulatory Requirements, Analysis and Methodology Department;
- Credit Institutions Supervision Department;
- Insurance and Pension Supervision Department;
- Capital Market Supervision Department;
- Market Participants Audit Department;
- Anti-Money Laundering Department;
- Financial Technology Supervision Department;
- Resolution and Protection Schemes Department.
Most of the FCMC’s employees will continue their work at Latvijas Banka and will ensure further implementation of the functions performed so far.
Decision-making in the area of supervision and resolution
Latvijas Banka’s regulations and internal regulatory acts are currently approved and after the integration of the supervisory and resolution functions will be also approved by the Council of Latvijas Banka.
Decisions in the area of supervision and resolution will be made in two Committees set up for that purpose by the Council of Latvijas Banka, empowering them to take decisions in certain areas. The Committees will start their work next year.
Latvijas Banka’s Supervision Committee will be chaired by the Deputy Governor of Latvijas Banka in the area of supervision, and its basic tasks are:
- to implement the strategy for supervision of the financial market and financial market participants supervised by Latvijas Banka,
- to approve the methodology and plans for supervision of the financial market and financial market participants supervised by Latvijas Banka,
- to make decisions laid down in the laws governing the activity of the financial market and financial market participants supervised by Latvijas Banka, including decisions on the application of sanctions and decisions on the restriction of rights, fulfilment of commitments and activity of the financial market participants supervised by Latvijas Banka,
- to make decisions in relation to the application of sanctions laid down in the Law on Credit Register, as well as sanctions in the area of statistics.
The Regulation of the Supervision Committee is available here.
Latvijas Banka’s Resolution Committee will be chaired by the Latvijas Banka’s Council Member responsible for the area of resolution, who, at the same time, is not responsible for the processes related to the direct supervision of the financial market in Latvijas Banka. The basic task of the Resolution Committee is to make decisions laid down in its Regulation and determined in the laws governing the application of resolution and ensuring of compensation disbursement schemes.
The Regulation of the Resolution Committee is available here.
Decisions of the Supervision Committee and the Resolution Committee may be contested in the Council of Latvijas Banka according to the procedure laid down in the Administrative Procedure Law.
Consultative Council for Financial Market
To facilitate the participation of financial market participants supervised by Latvijas Banka in the areas of regulation and supervision of the activity of the financial market and its participants, application of resolution and ensuring of compensation disbursement schemes, Latvijas Banka will establish a consultative body, i. e. the Consultative Financial Market Council.
The Consultative Financial Market Council will consist of delegates from all associations of financial market participants supervised by Latvijas Banka and three representatives of Latvijas Banka. The composition of the Consultative Financial Market Council will be approved by the Governor of Latvijas Banka.
In accordance with the Law on Latvijas Banka, the tasks of the Consultative Financial Market Council will be to provide proposals for such draft regulations of Latvijas Banka which are to be issued by Latvijas Banka, to provide an opinion on the planned expenditures of Latvijas Banka in the subsequent year for the regulation and supervision of the financial market and its participants, the application of resolution, and the ensuring of compensation disbursement schemes; as well as to provide an evaluation regarding the results of accumulation of funds for the compensation disbursement schemes and compensation disbursements thereto.
The Regulation of the Consultative Financial Market Council of Latvijas Banka is available here.
Communication on supervisory issues and the office address
From 1 January 2023, any correspondence on the financial market matters should be addressed to Latvijas Banka; its legal and office address: K. Valdemāra iela 2A, Riga, LV-1050. For communication, please use the e-mail address:
Information related to the supervision of the financial market, resolution and protection schemes as well as public statements related to these areas will be available on Latvijas Banka’s website www.bank.lv where you will find also contact information and details of the departments of Latvijas Banka.
In case of any questions, please contact the FCMC (telephone:+371 6 777 4800, e‑mail: