Updated information on payment intermediation

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE CENTRAL BANK OF ICELAND:

The Central Bank of Iceland has compiled updated information on the status of domestic and international payment intermediation. This information describes the status of payment intermediation for individuals and companies.

The Central Bank will maintain current information on this topic on a separate page on its website.

The Central Bank is doing everything in its power to solve the current payment intermediation problems. The Bank has set up and activated indirect routing arrangements for cross-border payment intermediation, but unfortunately, these indirect routes sometimes involve delays. The Bank has contacted a number of foreign central banks and asked them to assist us by instructing their own banks to use the Central Bank of Iceland infrastructure to send payments to this country if their banks fear they will be held liable for damages in the event that payments are not delivered to the correct recipients. It is hoped that these new routing arrangements will begin to function as expected early this week. The British authorities have been asked to provide a more thorough explanation of their actions and the scope of those actions. The British Treasury provided further explanation and published a statement on its website last Friday (October 17). This should resolve some of the current problems.

Nonetheless, all parties involved must realise that it takes time to solve the complex problems that have arisen, particularly because we depend on the actions and intervention of a number of foreign entities. All those who have interests to protect and who are affected by this situation are encouraged to do their utmost to explain the matter to their business colleagues. The Icelandic parties in question lack neither the will nor the ability to abide by their obligations vis-à-vis their foreign customers. The root of the matter lies with the actions and intervention of foreign financial undertakings, which in turn can be attributed in part to the actions taken by the British authorities and others.