CENTRAL BANK ACT, 1989

83.—For the purpose of sections 76, 86 and 88, the relevant period in relation to a particular acquiring transaction shall, subject to section 86 (2), be—

• (a) where the Minister's consent is required by virtue of section 77 to a proposal of the Bank to approve or not to approve the transaction, the period of 6 months, and

• (b) in every other case, the period of 3 months,

such period beginning on the date on which the Bank first receives a notification under section 82 or, where the Bank requests further information from an undertaking concerned under section 82, the date of receipt by the Bank of such information.

84 Inquiries by Bank.

84.—(1) The Bank may carry out such inquiries and obtain such information as it considers necessary to enable it to consider the proposed acquiring transaction.

• (2) Where the provisions of section 77 apply, the Minister may require the Bank to carry out such inquiries and provide him with such information as he considers necessary to enable him to decide to give or not to give his consent for the purposes of that section.

• (3) Any person who wilfully and knowingly impedes the Bank's inquiries under this section or provides false or misleading information shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

• (a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or to both, or

• (b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding £50,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or to both.

85 Communication of Bank's approval or refusal to approve.

85.—(1) Where the Bank approves or approves subject to conditions or refuses to approve a proposed acquiring transaction, it shall communicate the approval and conditions (if any) or the refusal, as the case may be, to the undertakings concerned which had notified the Bank of the proposal under section 82 and, where such a communication is not in writing, the Bank shall confirm in writing the approval or refusal to approve, as the case may be, as soon as possible thereafter.

• (2) Where the Bank refuses to approve the proposed acquiring transaction, it shall state its reasons in writing and, subject to section 16, shall send them to the persons concerned as soon as possible thereafter.

86 Appeal to High Court against refusal, etc., of Bank.

86.—(1) Where the Bank communicates with an undertaking concerned in accordance with section 85 that it—

• (a) refuses to give its approval, or

• (b) gives its approval subject to conditions,

an appeal on a point of law may be made by the undertaking to the Court against the refusal or approval, as the case may be, within one month of that refusal or approval being so communicated.

• (2) Where the Court allows the appeal it shall direct the Bank to make a new decision in accordance with the Court's determination and the Bank shall make its decision within the relevant period beginning on the date of the Court's determination and, in a case to which section 77 relates, consult with the Minister before making its decision.

• (3) Where on an appeal under this section the Minister requests to be made a party to the proceedings, the Court shall order that he shall be added as a party.

• (4) Where any costs are incurred by the Minister in connection with an appeal under this section, the Court may make such order as it considers just as to the payment of those costs by other parties to the proceedings.

• (5) Where the Court is satisfied, because of the nature or the circumstances of the case or otherwise in the interests of justice, that it is desirable, the whole or any part of proceedings under this section may be heard otherwise than in public.

• (6) An appeal against a decision of the Court under this section shall not lie to the Supreme Court.

• (7) In this section “the Court” means the High Court.

87 Contravention of approval, etc.

87.—(1) Where an acquiring transaction is entered into subsequent to approval being given by the Bank, any person who contravenes (whether by act or omission) the approval or any condition of the approval shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

• (a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or to both, or

• (b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding £50,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or to both.

• (2) Where a person is convicted of an offence under this section by reason of his failure, neglect or refusal to comply with a condition of the approval requiring him to perform a specified act within a specified period or before a specified date, and the act remains, after the date of the conviction, unperformed by him, the person shall be guilty of contravening this section on every day on which the contravention continues after that conviction and for each such offence he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £100 or on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £5,000.

• (3) Notwithstanding the paragraph numbered 4 of section 10 of the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act, 1851, summary proceedings for an offence under this section may be instituted within 12 months from—

• (a) in the case of an offence to which subsection (1) (a) relates, the latest day on which the offence was committed, and

• (b) in the case of an offence to which subsection (2) relates, the day on which the offence was committed.

88 Application of certain other enactments.

88.—(1) Nothing in any other enactment shall be construed as relieving a holder of a licence or other person of any obligation of his to comply with section 82.

• (2) An order under section 201 or 203 of the Companies Act, 1963, in respect of a proposed amalgamation or under section 33 of the Act of 1971 in respect of a proposed transfer of business of a holder of a licence (being in each case an acquiring transaction) shall not be made until the Bank has given its approval to the acquiring transaction or the relevant period referred to in section 83 has elapsed without the Bank having given or refused to give such approval.

Chapter VII Supervision of Certain Financial Institutions for the purposes of an International Financial Services Centre

89 Definitions (Chapter VII).

89.—In this Chapter—

“the Area” means the Customs House Docks Area, as defined in section 41 of the Finance Act, 1986;

“enactment” includes any act of the European Communities which has the force of law in the State;

“financial institution” has the meaning assigned to it by section 90;

“self-regulatory body” has the meaning assigned to it in section 94 (1).

90 Application (Chapter VII).

90.—This Chapter shall apply to every company to which a certificate has been given by the Minister under section 39B (inserted by the Finance Act, 1987) of the Finance Act, 1980 (in this Chapter referred to as a “financial institution”) other than every financial institution which is the holder of a licence under section 9 of the Act of 1971 or a moneybroker for the purposes of Chapter IX or is subject to supervision or is capable of being inspected by virtue of—

• (a) the Building Societies Act, 1976, and every other Act which is to be construed together with that Act as one Act,

• (b) the Friendly Societies Act, 1896, and every other Act which is to be construed together with that Act as one Act,

• (c) the Assurance Companies Act, 1909, and every other Act which is to be construed together with that Act as one Act, or

• (d) any other enactment which for the time being stands specified by order under section 91.

91 Orders (Chapter VII).

91.—(1) Where the Minister is of the opinion, after consulting the Bank and such other Ministers (if any) as he considers it appropriate to consult with, that there are adequate supervisory and inspection provisions contained in any enactment relating to a financial institution or a class or type of institution to which, but for an order under this section for the purposes of section 90 (d), the provisions of this Chapter would apply, then the Minister may by order specify the enactment concerned and, where necessary in the context of that enactment, the institution or class or type of institution to which the order relates and, accordingly, those provisions shall not apply to an institution to which the order relates.

• (2) The Minister may, after consulting the Bank and such other Ministers (if any) as he considers it appropriate to consult with, by order revoke an order under subsection (1).

92 Supervision, etc. of financial institutions by Bank.

92.—(1) Every financial institution to which this Chapter applies shall comply with such supervisory and reporting requirements or conditions relating to its business which the Bank considers prudent to impose on it from time to time for the purposes and in the interest of the proper and orderly regulation of the institution or a group of institutions (including the institution) or for the purpose of the development of the Area as an International Financial Services Centre.

• (2) The imposition of prudential, supervisory and reporting requirements and conditions by the Central Bank shall not constitute a warranty as to the solvency of entities covered by this section or entities forming part of groups covered by this section and the Bank shall not be liable in respect of any loss incurred through the insolvency or default of any of those parties.

93 Application of sections 17 and 18 of Act of 1971.

93.—Without prejudice to the provisions of section 92, the provisions of section 17 (which relates to books and records of holders of licences) and section 18 (which relates to furnishing of information to the Bank) of the Act of 1971 (as amended by this Part) shall apply to every financial institution to which this Chapter relates and to every associated enterprise (within the meaning of those sections) of such an institution as if each such institution were the holder of a licence for the purposes of the Central Bank Acts, 1942 to 1989.

94 Establishment of self-regulatory bodies.

94.—(1) The Bank may, in writing and after consulting the Minister, direct any group of financial institutions to which this Chapter applies and which are specified in the direction to establish a body (in this Chapter referred to as “a self-regulatory body”) of such legal character as the Bank may specify to regulate the business conduct, or any aspect of the business conduct as may be specified, of the financial institutions to which the direction relates.

• (2) The rules (including management and future membership) of a self-regulatory body shall be submitted jointly by the financial institutions concerned to the Bank for its approval.

• (3) The approval of the rules of a self-regulatory body under this section is without prejudice to the power of the Bank to impose requirements or conditions by virtue of section 92, or further direction under subsection (1), on any of the financial institutions concerned.

• (4) Where a self-regulatory body has been established for the purposes of this section, the provisions of sections 92, 93, 95, and 96 shall apply to the body as if it were, and in the same manner as they apply to, a financial institution to which this Chapter applies.

• (5) Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing any financial institution from being a member of any organisation which supervises or controls business conduct otherwise than by virtue of this section.

95 Power of Court to prohibit failure to comply with requirement or condition under Chapter VII.

95.—(1) Where, on an application made in a summary manner by the Bank, the Court is of the opinion that there has occurred or is occurring a failure by a financial institution or institutions to comply with a requirement or condition imposed by virtue of section 92 or with a direction under section 94, the Court may, by order, prohibit the continuance of the failure by the institution or institutions concerned.

• (2) The Court when considering the matter may make such interim or interlocutory order as it considers appropriate.

• (3) Where the Court is satisfied, because of the nature or the circumstances of the case or otherwise in the interests of justice, that it is desirable, the whole or any part of proceedings under this section may be heard otherwise than in public.

• (4) In this section “the Court” means the High Court.

96 Report of non-compliance to Minister.

96.—Where the Bank—

• (a) is satisfied that a financial institution to which this Chapter applies is not complying with any obligation imposed on it by or under this Chapter (including any rule of a self-regulatory body of which the institution is a member), and

• (b) is of the opinion that the nature of the non-compliance is such that it requires notification to the Minister,

then the Bank shall notify the Minister of that non-compliance.

Chapter VIII Supervision of Financial Futures and Options Exchanges

97 Definitions (Chapter VIII).

97.—In this Chapter—

“an exchange” means a financial futures and options exchange and, where the context so permits or requires, includes an existing exchange or a proposed exchange;

“an existing exchange” has the meaning assigned to it by section 100;

“financial futures and options exchange” means a market of a financial nature where, in an organised manner and under agreed rules, members of that market trade, by way of electronic, written, oral or any other form of communication—

• (a) in rights under contract for the sale or purchase of a financial product, commodity or property of any other description under which delivery is to be made, or measures equivalent to delivery are to be implemented, at a future date at a price agreed or determinable when the contract is made, or

• (b) by way of option on a contract to which paragraph (a) relates or on a financial product, commodity or property of any other description, including an option to buy, sell or vary the price or quantity concerned;

“a proposed exchange” has the meaning assigned to it by section 99;

“rules” in relation to an existing exchange or a proposed exchange, means, respectively, the rules governing or proposed to govern the membership and operation of the exchange.

98 Gaming and Lotteries Acts.

98.—For the avoidance of doubt it is hereby declared that no contract or option to which this Chapter relates shall be void or unenforceable by reason of the Gaming and Lotteries Acts, 1956 to 1986.

99 Establishment of exchanges.

99.—After the passing of this Act, no financial futures and options exchange shall be established unless the persons who propose to establish the exchange (in this Chapter referred to as “a proposed exchange”) have submitted the rules for such a proposed exchange to the Bank for approval and the Bank has approved those rules.

100 Existing exchanges.

100.—(1) Within 3 months of the passing of this Act every exchange which was established before such passing (in this Chapter referred to as “an existing exchange”) shall—

• (a) submit its rules to the Bank for approval, or

• (b) disestablish itself.

• (2) Pending a decision by the Bank to approve or not to approve of the rules of an existing exchange submitted to it under subsection (1) (a), the Bank may—

• (a) subject, where appropriate, to the other provisions of this section, impose on the exchange such conditions or requirements as it considers appropriate to impose, or

• (b) issue a direction under section 105 as if the existing exchange were an exchange whose rules had been approved by the Bank.

• (3) Where dealings concerning securities created by the Minister could be carried on on an existing exchange to which subsection (2) relates, the Minister may direct the Bank to impose under paragraph (a) of that subsection, and the Bank shall so impose, conditions or requirements specified in his direction (being conditions or requirements which relate to such dealings and which the Minister is satisfied, after consultation with the Bank, do not constrain the prudent regulation of the exchange).

• (4) The Bank shall not impose on an existing exchange by virtue of this section a condition or requirement which relates to dealings concerning securities created by the Minister unless either—

• (a) subsection (3) applies to the condition or requirement, or

• (b) the Bank has notified the Minister of its intention to impose the condition or requirement on the exchange.

101 Approval of rules by Bank, conditions, etc.

101.—(1) (a) Where the Bank approves the rules of an existing exchange or for a proposed exchange, it may—

• (i) make its approval subject to conditions or requirements, and

• (ii) at any time after approval, impose conditions or requirements on the exchange or amend or revoke any condition or requirement to which this subsection relates, whether or not previously amended by virtue of this subparagraph.

• (b) Every condition or requirement imposed to which this subsection relates and every amendment thereto or revocation thereof shall be as the Bank sees fit to impose, amend or revoke in the interest of the prudent regulation of the exchange concerned and every such condition or requirement may be imposed on either or both—

• (i) that exchange, and

• (ii) the members of that exchange (either collectively or individually).

• (c) In respect of any condition or requirement to which paragraph (a) (ii) relates, a condition or requirement shall not be imposed, amended or revoked until—

• (i) the Bank has notified the exchange concerned of its intention to so impose, amend or revoke, and

• (ii) the Bank has heard any representations made by that exchange or any member thereof within such time limit as the Bank may specify when notifying the exchange.

• (d) Where dealings concerning securities created by the Minister could be carried on on an exchange, any condition or requirement which relates to such dealings shall not be imposed by virtue of this subsection unless the Bank has notified the Minister of its intention to so impose.

• (2)
• (a) Where—

• (i) the Bank intends to approve the rules of an existing exchange or for a proposed exchange, and

• (ii) dealings concerning securities created by the Minister could be carried on on the exchange,

the Minister may direct the Bank to make its approval subject to the imposition by it of conditions or requirements specified in his direction (being conditions or requirements which relate to such dealings and which the Minister is satisfied, after consultation with the Bank, do not constrain the prudent regulation of the exchange) and, accordingly, the Bank shall make its approval subject to every condition or requirement so specified.

• (b) At any time after the approval of the rules of an existing exchange or for a proposed exchange, the Minister may, in respect of dealings concerning securities created by him, direct the Bank to impose conditions or requirements on the exchange (being conditions or requirements which relate to such dealings and which the Minister is satisfied, after consultation with the Bank, do not constrain the prudent regulation of the exchange) or amend or revoke any condition or requirement to which this subsection relates, whether or not previously amended by virtue of this paragraph and, accordingly, the Bank shall so impose, amend or revoke the condition or requirement.

• (3) The approval by the Bank of the rules of or for an exchange shall not constitute a warranty as to the solvency of the exchange or of any member of the exchange and the Bank shall not be liable in respect of any losses incurred through the insolvency or default of the exchange or any of its members.

• (4) An application for approval of the rules of an existing exchange or for a proposed exchange shall be in such form and contain such particulars as the Bank may from time to time determine.

102 Refusal of Bank to approve rules.

102.—(1) The Bank shall not refuse to approve the rules of an existing exchange or for a proposed exchange without the consent of the Minister and unless it is satisfied that the approval would not be in the interest of the orderly and proper regulation of such an exchange, and the Minister shall not consent to the refusal unless he is satisfied that the approval would not be in the interest of the orderly and proper regulation of such an exchange.

• (2) Whenever the Bank proposes to refuse to approve the rules of an existing exchange or for a proposed exchange—

• (a) it shall notify the exchange or (in the case of a proposed exchange) the promoter of the exchange in writing that it intends to seek the consent of the Minister to the refusal and of its reasons for the refusal and that the person may, within 21 days after the date of the giving of the notification, make representations in writing to the Minister in relation to the proposed refusal,

• (b) the exchange or the promoter may make such representations in writing to the Minister within the time aforesaid, and

• (c) the Minister shall, before deciding to give or withhold his consent, consider any representations duly made to him under this subsection in relation to the proposed refusal.

103 Application of section 17 of Act of 1971.

103.—Without prejudice to the provisions of section 101 the provisions of section 17 (which relate to books and records of holders of licences) of the Act of 1971 (as amended by this Part) shall apply as if every exchange to which this Chapter applies and every member of that exchange were the holder of a licence for the purpose of the Central Bank Acts, 1942 to 1989.

104 Restriction on advertising.

104.—(1) Subject to subsection (2), a person shall not advertise or cause to be advertised the services of an exchange or make any other solicitation in respect of those services unless the Bank has approved the rules of the exchange.

• (2) Subsection (1) shall not apply—

• (a) subject to any condition or requirement to the contrary imposed by the Bank under section 100 (2), to an existing exchange, or to any person acting on behalf of the exchange, during the period commencing with the submission of its rules to the Bank for approval and ending with approval or refusal to approve, or

• (b) to any prospectus or other document published by or on behalf of persons who propose to establish such an exchange, where such prospectus or other document is published solely for the purpose of such a proposal.

• (3) If an advertisement or other solicitation to which this section relates is published and it does not include the name and address of the person who arranged with the publisher for the advertisement or solicitation, then the Bank may, at any time within the period of 12 months after any publication of the advertisement or solicitation, request the publisher to supply the name and address of that person to the Bank and the publisher shall forthwith comply with that request.

105 Directions by Bank to suspend trading, dealing.

105.—(1) Where the Bank is satisfied that an exchange or any member thereof has failed or is failing to comply with a condition or requirement under section 100 (2) (a) or 101 the Bank may give a direction to either or both—

• (a) the exchange to suspend trading, and

• (b) any or all of the members of the exchange to suspend trading or dealing thereon,

for a specified period or until further notice by the Bank.

• (2)
• (a) The exchange or member or members thereof to whom the direction was given under subsection (1) may apply in a summary manner to the Court for, and the Court may grant, an order setting aside the direction.

• (b) The Bank may apply in a summary manner to the Court to have a direction by it under this section confirmed by the Court.

• (3) The Court when considering the matter may make such interim or interlocutory order as it considers appropriate.

• (4) Where the Court is satisfied, because of the nature or the circumstances of the case or otherwise in the interests of justice, that it is desirable, the whole or any part of proceedings under this section may be heard otherwise than in public.

• (5) In this section “the Court” means the High Court.

106 Revocation of approval of rules.

106.—(1) The Bank may—

• (a) revoke an approval of the rules of an exchange if the exchange to whom it was granted so requests,

• (b) with the consent of the Minister, revoke an approval of the rules of an exchange if—

• (i) the exchange—

• (I) has not commenced to operate within 12 months of the date on which the approval was granted, or

• (II) has ceased operating and no trading or dealing has been carried on on the exchange during a period of more than 6 months immediately following the cesser,

• (ii) being a company, the exchange is being wound up,

• (iii) the exchange (being an existing exchange) or the promoter of a proposed exchange has obtained the approval of the Bank through false statements or any other irregular means,

• (iv) the exchange becomes unable to meet its obligations to creditors or suspends payment lawfully due by the exchange or by any member thereof,

• (c) with the consent of the Minister revoke the approval if, since the grant of the approval, the circumstances relevant to the grant have changed and are such that, if an application for an approval were made in the changed circumstances, it would be refused.

• (2) Whenever the Bank proposes to revoke an approval (other than in pursuance of a request by the exchange to whom it was granted to do so)—

• (a) it shall notify the exchange concerned that it intends to seek the consent of the Minister to the revocation and of the reasons for the revocation and that the exchange may, within 21 days after the date of the giving of the notification, make representations in writing to the Minister in relation to the proposed revocation,

• (b) the exchange may make such representations in writing to the Minister within the time aforesaid, and

• (c) the Minister shall, before deciding to give or withhold his consent, consider any representations duly made to him under this subsection in relation to the proposed revocation.

• (3) Where an approval of the rules of an exchange is revoked and the exchange is not a company which is being wound up—

• (a) the exchange and the members thereof shall continue to be subject to the duties and obligations imposed by or under this Chapter or section 18 of the Act of 1971 until all liabilities of the exchange and its members have been discharged to the satisfaction of the Bank,

• (b) the exchange shall, as soon as possible after the approval is revoked, notify the Bank and such other persons (if any) as the Bank indicates are to be notified of the measures being taken or proposed to be taken to discharge in full and without undue delay the liabilities of the exchange and the members thereof,

• (c) in the case where—

• (i) that exchange has notified the Bank in accordance with paragraph (b) and the Bank is of the opinion that the measures being taken or proposed to be taken for the purposes of that paragraph are not satisfactory, or

• (ii) that exchange has not so notified the Bank and the Bank is of the opinion that the exchange has failed to so notify as soon as possible after the approval is revoked, or

• (iii) the Bank is of the opinion that that exchange has failed to take all reasonable steps to notify persons which the Bank has indicated, under paragraph (b), are to be notified,

then the Bank may give a direction in writing to that exchange or to any of its members thereof for such period, not exceeding 6 months, as may be specified therein, prohibiting the exchange or the members thereof so directed from—

• (I) dealing with or disposing of any assets or specified assets of the exchange or of its members in any manner, or

• (II) engaging in any transaction or class of transaction or specified transaction, or

• (III) making payments,

without the prior authorisation of the Bank, and the Bank may require that exchange or any of its members to prepare and submit to it for its approval within two months of the direction, a scheme for the orderly discharge in full of the liabilities concerned.

• (4)
• (a) Where the approval of the rules of an exchange is revoked and the exchange is a company which is being wound up, the liquidator of the company shall, in addition to his duties and obligations in respect of the winding up, be subject to the duties and obligations to which the exchange would be subject were it an exchange to which subsection (3) relates and that subsection shall, for the purpose of this subsection, be construed accordingly.

• (b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), the Bank may, where it revokes an approval and considers it appropriate in the circumstances, remove in writing the duty and obligation imposed on the liquidator concerned to comply with paragraph (b) (as construed by this subsection) of subsection (3) and may impose in writing on that liquidator such further or other duty and obligation which corresponds to that set out in the said paragraph (b).

• (c) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as affecting any duty or obligation under this Chapter of the members of the exchange concerned.

• (5) The Bank shall as soon as may be after the revocation of an approval of the rules of an exchange publish a notice of the revocation in such manner as it thinks fit.

107 Offences and penalties (Chapter VIII).

107.—(1) Any person who contravenes section 99, 100 or 104 and an exchange or a member thereof who—

• (a) commits by act or omission a breach of a condition or requirement duly imposed and which relates to the approval given by the Bank to the rules of the exchange, or

• (b) fails to comply with a direction under section 105 or 106,

shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

• (i) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or to both, or

• (ii) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding £50,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or to both,

and, if the contravention, breach or failure in respect of which he was convicted is continued after conviction, he shall be guilty of an offence on every day on which the contravention, breach or failure continues after conviction in respect of the original contravention, breach or failure and for each such offence he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £100 or on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £5,000.

• (2) In any proceedings for an offence under this section which relates to section 104, it shall be a good defence for the accused to prove that he was, at the relevant time, a person whose business it was to publish or arrange for the publication on behalf of some other person of advertisements or other solicitations and that the relevant advertisement or other solicitation was received for publication in the ordinary course of that business and that he did not know and had no reason to suspect that to use it to advertise, or otherwise solicit could be an offence.

Chapter IX Supervision of Moneybrokers

108 Interpretation (Chapter IX).

108.—In this Chapter—

“authorisation” means an authorisation granted to a person by the Bank under this Chapter to carry on the business of moneybroking;

“financial institution” has the same meaning that it has in Chapter VII;

“moneybroker” means a person carrying on a moneybroking business;

“moneybroking business” means any business which consists of the business of arranging all or any of the following, that is to say:

• (a) loans or borrowings of money,

• (b) purchases or sales of foreign exchange,

• (c) transactions of a type which for the time being stand prescribed by order under section 109, and

• (d) other transactions which are similar in effect to any of those to which paragraph (a), (b) or (c) relate,

between any two or more persons being a holder of a licence under section 9 of the Act of 1971, a building society, or a financial institution, and “moneybroking” shall be construed accordingly.

109 Orders (Chapter IX).

109.—(1) Where both the Minister and the Bank are of the opinion that it is necessary in the context of developments in the financial markets or the orderly and proper regulation of moneybroking business that certain types of transactions be prescribed for the purpose of the definition of “moneybroking business”, then the Minister may, at the request of the Bank, by order so prescribe.

• (2) The Minister may, at the request of the Bank, by order revoke an order under subsection (1).

110 Authorisation to carry on moneybroking business.

110.—(1) A person shall not carry on moneybroking business at any time after this section has been in operation for 3 months unless the person has been granted an authorisation for the purposes of this section and the authorisation has not been revoked.

• (2) Subject to the provisions of this section, the Bank may grant or refuse to grant to any person applying to it an authorisation to carry on moneybroking business.

• (3) Notwithstanding subsection (2), a person shall not, at the same time, be the holder of a licence under section 9 of the Act of 1971 and a person to whom a subsisting authorisation under this section relates.

• (4) The Bank shall not refuse an authorisation without the consent of the Minister and unless it is satisfied that the authorisation would not be in the interest of the orderly and proper regulation of moneybroking or banking, and the Minister shall not grant his consent to the refusal unless he is satisfied that the authorisation would not be in the interest of the orderly and proper regulation of moneybroking or banking.

• (5) Whenever the Bank proposes to refuse an authorisation to a person—

• (a) it shall notify the person in writing that it intends to seek the consent of the Minister to the refusal and of its reasons for the refusal and that the person may, within 21 days after the date of the giving of the notification, make representations in writing to the Minister in relation to the proposed refusal,

• (b) the person may make such representations in writing to the Minister within the time aforesaid, and

• (c) the Minister shall, before deciding to give or withhold his consent, consider any representations duly made to him under this subsection in relation to the proposed refusal.

• (6) An application for an authorisation shall be in such form and contain such particulars as the Bank may from time to time determine.

• (7) The authorisation of a person under this section shall not constitute a warranty as to the solvency of the person to carry on a moneybroking business and the Bank shall not be liable in respect of any losses incurred through the insolvency or default of the person.

111 Supervision, etc. of moneybrokers by Bank.

111.—Every person carrying on moneybroking business shall each comply with such supervisory and reporting requirements or conditions relating to his business which the Bank considers prudent to impose on him from time to time for the purposes and in the interest of the proper and orderly regulation of moneybroking.

112 Application of section 17 of Act of 1971.

112.—Without prejudice to the provisions of section 111, the provisions of section 17 (which relates to books and records of holders of licences) of the Act of 1971 (as amended by this Part) shall apply as if every person authorised by the Bank to carry on moneybroking business were the holder of a licence for the purposes of the Central Bank Acts, 1942 to 1989.

113 Power of Court to prohibit failure to comply with requirement or condition under Chapter IX.

113.—(1) Where, on an application made in a summary manner by the Bank, the Court is of the opinion that there has occurred or is occurring a failure by a moneybroker to comply with a requirement or condition imposed by virtue of section 111, the Court may, by order, prohibit the continuance of the failure by the moneybroker concerned.

• (2) The Court when considering the matter may make such interim or interlocutory order as it considers appropriate.

• (3) Where the Court is satisfied, because of the nature or the circumstances of the case or otherwise in the interests of justice, that it is desirable, the whole or any part of proceedings under this section may be heard otherwise than in public.

• (4) In this section “the Court” means the High Court.

114 Revocation of authorisations.

114.—(1) The Bank may—

• (a) revoke an authorisation if the person to whom it was granted so requests,

• (b) with the consent of the Minister, revoke an authorisation if the person to whom it was granted—

• (i) (I) has not commenced to carry on moneybroking business within 12 months of the date on which the authorisation was granted, or

• (II) has ceased to carry on moneybroking business and has not carried it on during a period of more than 6 months immediately following the cesser,

• (ii) is adjudicated bankrupt,

• (iii) being a partnership, the partnership is dissolved by death or bankruptcy of any partner, or otherwise under the law of partnership,

• (iv) being a company, is being wound up,

• (v) has obtained the authorisation through false statements or any other irregular means,

• (vi) becomes unable to meet his obligations to his creditors or suspends payments lawfully due by him or can no longer be relied upon to fulfil his obligations towards his creditors and in particular no longer provides security for the assets entrusted to him,

• (vii) is convicted on indictment of an offence under any provision of the Central Bank Acts, 1942 to 1989, or an offence involving fraud, dishonesty or breach of trust,

• (viii) has his head office in another state that is a member of the European Communities and the authority in that state that exercises in that state functions corresponding to those of the Bank under this Chapter has withdrawn authorisation from the institution of which the holder is a branch,

• (c) with the consent of the Minister, revoke the authorisation if, since the grant of the authorisation, the circumstances relevant to the grant have changed and are such that, if an application for an authorisation were made in the changed circumstances, it would be refused.

• (2) Whenever the Bank proposes to revoke an authorisation (other than in circumstances to which paragraph (a) or (b) (viii) of subsection (1) relate)—

• (a) the person to whom it was granted shall be notified in writing that the Bank intends to seek the consent of the Minister to the revocation and of the reasons for the revocation and that the person may, within 21 days after the date of the giving of the notification, make representations in writing to the Minister in relation to the proposed revocation,

• (b) the said person may make such representations in writing to the Minister within the time aforesaid, and

• (c) the Minister shall, before deciding to give or withhold his consent, consider any representations duly made to him under this subsection in relation to the proposed revocation.

115 Publication of names of moneybrokers and notices of revocation of authorisations.

115.—(1) The Bank shall publish from time to time, but not less frequently than once a year, in such manner as it thinks fit the names of persons authorised to carry on moneybroking business.

• (2) The Bank shall as soon as may be after the revocation of an authorisation publish a notice of the revocation in such manner as it thinks fit.

116 Offences and penalties (Chapter IX).

116.—A person who contravenes subsection (1) or (2) of section 110 or a moneybroker who fails by act or omission to comply with a requirement or condition imposed on him under section 111 shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

• (a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or to both, or

• (b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding £50,000 or, at the discretion of the court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or to both,

and, if the contravention or breach in respect of which he was convicted is continued after conviction, he shall be guilty of an offence on every day on which the contravention or breach continues after conviction in respect of the original contravention or breach and for each such offence he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £100 or on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £5,000.

Chapter X Codes of Practice

117 Codes of practice.

117.—(1) The Bank may, after consultation with the Minister, from time to time draw up, amend or revoke, in relation to any class or classes of licence holders or other persons supervised by the Bank under this or any other enactment, one or more than one code of practice concerning dealings with any class or classes of persons and every such code shall be observed by the licence holders, or other persons so supervised, to whom they relate.

• (2) In drawing up codes of practice the Bank shall have regard to—

• (a) the interest of customers and the general public, and

• (b) the promotion of fair competition in financial markets in the State.

• (3) The Bank may—

• (a) require any licence holder or other person supervised by it to provide all relevant information to the Bank to enable the Bank to satisfy itself as to compliance with the code by such licence holder or other person,

• (b) issue a direction in writing to such licence holder or other person to comply with practices specified in the direction where this is necessary, in the opinion of the Bank, to secure observance of the code.

• (4)
• (a) Any licence holder or other person supervised by the Bank who fails to provide information in accordance with subsection (3) (a) or to comply with a direction under subsection (3) (b) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

• (i) on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000, or

• (ii) on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £25,000.

• (b) Where a person has been convicted of an offence by virtue of paragraph (a) of this subsection and, after the conviction, the failure to provide information or to comply with the direction, as the case may be, continues, the person shall be guilty of contravening this section on every day on which the contravention continues after that conviction and for each such offence he shall be liable—

• (i) on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £100, or

• (ii) on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £2,500.

• (5) In this section “practices” includes procedures.

Chapter XI Legal Tender Notes

118 Provision of legal tender notes.

118.—(1) It shall be lawful for the Bank to provide and issue in accordance with this Part notes to be known and in this Part referred to as legal tender notes for the following denominations, namely, £1, £5, £10, £20, £50, £100 and any other monetary denominations in respect of which the Minister has made an order under subsection (4) and such notes shall be current in the State and shall be legal tender in the State for the payment of any amount.

• (2) Every legal tender note shall be of such form, size and design and printed in such a manner and on such paper and numbered and authenticated in such manner as stood prescribed before the commencement of this section or as may be prescribed thereafter from time to time for the purpose of this section.

• (3) Any legal tender note of any denomination provided and issued at any time under the Currency Act, 1927, or any subsequent Act shall continue to be current in the State and shall continue to be legal tender in the State for the payment of any amount.

• (4) The Minister may, from time to time, by order specify for the purposes of subsection (1) any monetary denomination which is not already specified either in that subsection or by virtue of this subsection.

• (5) In this section—

“paper” includes any material capable of being printed upon;

“prescribed” means prescribed by the Bank with the sanction of the Minister.

119 Application of certain enactments.

119.—Legal tender notes issued under this Act or under the Currency and Central Bank Acts, 1927 to 1971, or any of those Acts shall be deemed to be bank notes within the meaning of the Forgery Act, 1913, and any other enactment relating to offences in respect of bank notes which is for the time being in force in the State and to be valuable securities within the meaning of the Larceny Act, 1916, and any other law relating to stealing which is for the time being in force in the State and to be current coin of the State for the purpose of the Acts relating to payment of wages in cash and any other like enactment.

120 Issue of legal tender notes by Bank.

120.—(1) The Act of 1971 is hereby amended by the substitution of the following section for section 44:

“44. It shall be lawful for the Bank to issue legal tender notes—

• (a) to itself or any other person against—

  • (i) gold bullion, or

  • (ii) any currency, security or other form of asset which may be held by the Bank, which, in the case of such other person, is delivered to the Bank in such manner and subject to such conditions as it may prescribe, or

• (b) to such other person against an authorisation to charge that person's account with the Bank.”.

• (2) This section shall come into operation with effect from the date the legal tender note fund is wound up under section 22.

121 Redemption of legal tender notes.

121.—(1) The holder of a legal tender note of any denomination shall be entitled, on demand made by him during office hours at the principal office of the Bank in Dublin, to receive in exchange for the note—

• (a) either or both one or more legal tender notes and coins which would be legal tender, or

• (b) where the Bank has determined that payment by any other means is appropriate and the holder of the legal tender note so requests or consents, payment by that means, or

• (c) (i) either or both one or more legal tender notes and coins which would be legal tender, and

• (ii) part-payment in accordance with paragraph (b),

to the same total value.

• (2) The Bank may refuse to exchange in accordance with subsection (1) any legal tender note which is so worn or damaged that it is in the opinion of the Bank not identifiable as a particular legal tender note or that the portion of such note forthcoming is not sufficient in the opinion of the Bank to exclude the possibility of the residue of such note being so exchanged on another occasion.

• (3) The Bank may make such arrangements as it thinks proper for the cancellation and destruction by it or on its behalf of such legal tender notes exchanged in accordance with subsection (1) as it does not think proper to preserve for re-issue.

122 Calling in of legal tender notes.

122.—The Bank may, subject to such conditions as to time, place, manner and order of presentation as it thinks fit, call in any legal tender notes issued under this Act, or under the Currency and Central Bank Acts, 1927 to 1971, or any of those Acts, on the terms of paying for such notes on presentation in the same manner as if they were being redeemed under section 121.

123 Defacement, etc., of legal tender notes and consolidated bank notes.

123.—(1) It shall not be lawful for any person to do any of the following things, that is to say—

• (a) to cut, tear, or otherwise mutilate, or to interfere with any security device on or contained in, a legal tender note or a consolidated bank note, or

• (b) to write, print, draw, stamp, emboss, or in any other way impress on a legal tender note or a consolidated bank note any letter, figure, design, or other mark, or

• (c) to perforate a legal tender note or a consolidated bank note, whether the perforations do or do not form or represent any letter, figure, or other design, or

• (d) to attach or affix to a legal tender note or a consolidated bank note any memorandum, advertisement or other writing.

• (2) Every person who commits any act in relation to a legal tender note or a consolidated bank note which is a contravention of this section shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £1,000.

• (3) The fact that a legal tender note has been the subject of an act which is a contravention of this section shall not prejudice or affect any obligation imposed or power conferred on the Bank by sections 121 and 122 of this Act to pay or exchange such note nor prejudice or affect any power so conferred on the Bank to refuse to exchange such note.

• (4) The fact that a consolidated bank note has been the subject of an act which is a contravention of this section shall not prejudice or affect the obligation imposed on the Bank by section 36 (3) of the Principal Act in respect of payment on presentation of the note at its principal office in Dublin.

• (5) This section shall not apply to anything done by or on behalf of the Bank for the purpose of the cancellation of a legal tender note or the retirement or cancellation of a consolidated bank note.

PART III Coinage

124 Definition (Part III).

124.—In this Part “the Act of 1969” means the Decimal Currency Act, 1969.

125 Amendment of section 3 of Act of 1969.

125.—(1) Section 3 of the Act of 1969 is hereby amended—

• (a) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (3):

• “(3A) The Minister may, in respect of any cupronickel or bronze coins of a particular denomination provided under this section, by order amend the said First Schedule by substituting, for the standard weight and remedy allowance relating to that weight which are specified therein in respect of those coins, such other standard weight and remedy allowance relating to that weight as he thinks fit and specifies in the order and the said First Schedule shall have effect accordingly.”;

• (b) in subsection (5), by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (c):

• “(c) Whenever an order is proposed to be made under this subsection, other than only for the purpose of amending—

• (i) the standard weight and standard composition of any coins and the remedy (or variation from the standard weight and standard composition) to be allowed in respect thereof, or

• (ii) any such weight or composition or remedy (or variation from either such weight or composition),

a draft of the order shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the order shall not be made until a resolution approving the draft has been passed by each such House.”.

• (2) Any order made in whole or in part under section 3 (5) of the Act of 1969 and in force immediately before the commencement of this section shall continue in force as if it had been made to the like extent under and in accordance with the said section 3(5) as amended by subsection (1) (b).

126 Amendment of section 4 of Act of 1969.

126.—(1) Section 4 of the Act of 1969 is hereby amended—

• (a) by the deletion of subsection (1), and

• (b) in subsection (2)—

• (i) by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (a):

• “(a) The Minister may, whenever and so often as he thinks fit, by order (in this section referred to as a new coinage order) declare that it is expedient to provide coins of a specified metal or a specified mixture of metals, other than as provided for by or under section 3 of this Act, of any specified denomination of coin which the Minister is authorised by or under the said section 3 to provide.”,

and

• (ii) by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (d):

• “(d) Whenever an order is proposed to be made under this subsection, a draft of the order shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the order shall not be made until a resolution approving the draft has been passed by each such House.”.

• (2) Any order made in whole or in part under section 4(2) of the Act of 1969 and in force immediately before the commencement of this section shall continue in force as if it had been made to the like extent under and in accordance with the said section 4 (2) as amended by subsection (1).

127 Legal tender (coinage).

127.—The Act of 1969 is hereby amended by the substitution of the following section for section 8:

“8. (1) A tender of money if made in coins which are issued or deemed to be issued under any provision of the Decimal Currency Acts, 1969 to 1989, shall, in respect of each denomination tendered, be legal tender for the payment of an amount not exceeding twenty times their face value but for no greater amount.

• (2) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to coins called in under section 12 of this Act from the relevant operative date for the purposes of subsection (2) of that section.”.

128 Alteration of penalties under Act of 1969.

128.—The Act of 1969 is hereby amended—

• (a) in section 14, by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (3):

• “(3) Every person who makes or issues any piece of metal or mixed metal in contravention of subsection (1) of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

  • (i) on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or at the discretion of the court to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both such fine and such imprisonment, or

  • (ii) on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £5,000 or at the discretion of the court to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both such fine and such imprisonment.”,

• (b) in section 15, by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (2):

• “(2) If any person—

  • (a) acts in contravention of this section, or

  • (b) fails to comply with any condition attached to a licence under this section,

  he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable—

  - (i) on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000 or at the discretion of the court to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both such fine and such imprisonment, or
  
  - (ii) on conviction on indictment to a fine not exceeding £5,000 or at the discretion of the court to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both such fine and such imprisonment and, in addition, the court may order the articles in respect of which the offence was committed to be forfeited.”.
  

129 Amendment of section 17 of Act of 1969.

129.—Section 17 of the Act of 1969 is hereby amended by the substitution of “(other than an order under section 3 (5) or 4 of this Act which is required to be confirmed by resolution of each House of the Oireachtas before coming into force, or an order under section 12 of this Act)” for “(other than an order under section 3 (5), 4 or 12 of this Act)”, and the said section 17, as so amended, is set out in the Table to this section.

TABLE

130 Collective citation (Part III).

130.—The Decimal Currency Acts, 1969 and 1970, and this Part may be cited together as the Decimal Currency Acts, 1969 to 1989.

PART IV Miscellaneous Provisions Relating to Financial Transactions

131 Amendment of Bankers' Books Evidence Act, 1879.

131.—The Bankers' Books Evidence Act, 1879, is hereby amended—

• (a) by the substitution of the following section for section 5:

“5. (1) A copy of an entry in a banker's book shall not be received in evidence under this Act unless it is further proved that—

• (a) in the case where the copy sought to be received in evidence has been reproduced in a legible form directly by either or both mechanical and electronic means from a banker's book maintained in a non-legible form, it has been so reproduced;

• (b) in the case where the copy sought to be received in evidence has been made (either directly or indirectly) from a copy to which paragraph (a) of this section would apply:

  • (i) the copy sought to be so received has been examined with a copy so reproduced and is a correct copy, and

  • (ii) the copy so reproduced is a copy to which the said paragraph (a) would apply if it were sought to have it received in evidence;

• (c) in any other case, the copy has been examined with the original entry and is correct.

• (2) Proof to which subsection (1) of this section relates shall be given—

  • (a) in respect of paragraph (a) or (b) (ii) of that subsection, by some person who has been in charge of the reproduction concerned,

  • (b) in respect of paragraph (b) (i) of that subsection, by some person who has examined the copy with the reproduction concerned,

  • (c) in respect of paragraph (c) of that subsection, by some person who has examined the copy with the original entry concerned,

  and may be given either orally or by an affidavit sworn before any commissioner or person authorised to take affidavits.”,

• (b) by the deletion in section 6 after “legal proceeding” of the words “to which the bank is not a party”,

• (c) by the insertion of the following section after section 7:

“Extension of section 7.

7A. If, on an application made by a member of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of Superintendent, a court or a judge is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for believing—

• (a) that an indictable offence has been committed; and

• (b) that there is material in the possession of a bank specified in the application which is likely to be of substantial value (whether by itself or together with other material) to the investigation of the offence;

a court or judge may make an order that the applicant or another member of the Garda Síochána designated by him be at liberty to inspect and take copies of any entries in a banker's book for the purposes of investigation of the offence.”,

• (d) by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section 9 (as amended by the Bankers' Books Evidence (Amendment) Act, 1959):

• “(a) include any records used in the ordinary business of a bank, or used in the transfer department of a bank acting as registrar of securities, whether—

  • (i) comprised in bound volume, loose-leaf binders or other loose-leaf filing systems, loose-leaf ledger sheets, pages, folios or cards, or

  • (ii) kept on microfilm, magnetic tape or in any non-legible form (by the use of electronics or otherwise) which is capable of being reproduced in a permanent legible form, and”

and

• (e) by the substitution of the following section for section 11:

“11. Days which are non-business days for the purposes of, and to the extent provided by the Bills of Exchange Act, 1882, shall be excluded from the computation of time under this Act.”.

132 Amendment of Bills of Exchange Act, 1882.

132.—(1) The Bills of Exchange Act, 1882, is hereby amended:

• (a) in section 2:

• (i) by the insertion of the following definition after the definition of “Bill”:

“‘Business days’ means those days which are not non-business days.”,

• (ii) by the insertion of the following definition after the definition of “Issue”:

“‘Non-business days’ means—

• (a) Saturday, except in a case and to the extent to which the proviso to the paragraph numbered (1) of section 14 of this Act applies,

• (b) Sunday,

• (c) such days as are public holidays, and

• (d) where and to the extent that any direction under section 134 of the Central Bank Act, 1989, provides, such other day or days as so provided.”,

and

• (iii) by the insertion of the following definition after the definition of “Person”:

“‘Public holiday’ has the same meaning as it has for the purposes of the Holidays (Employees) Act, 1973.”,

• (b) in section 14, by the substitution of the following paragraph for the paragraph numbered (1):

• “(1) The bill is due and payable in all cases on the last day of the time of payment as fixed by the bill or, if that is a non-business day, on the succeeding business day:

Provided that nothing in this paragraph shall operate to prevent a bill being paid by the drawee on a Saturday (other than a Saturday that is a public holiday or to which paragraph (d) of the definition of ‘non-business days’ in section 2 of this Act relates) or cause him to incur any liability thereby, where—

- (*a*) the drawee is a banker, and

- (*b*) the Saturday concerned is the last day fixed by the bill as the time of payment, and

- (*c*) the drawee is normally open for business on a Saturday at his address given in or ascertainable from the bill,

  and, accordingly, presentation and payment of such a bill on the Saturday shall be valid and shall discharge it as fully as if it had been presented and paid on the next succeeding business day: but this provision shall not be construed as compelling the person entitled to payment on the bill to accept such payment on the Saturday.”,

• (c) by the insertion of the following section after section 45:

“Additional rules as to presentment of cheques and other documents.

45A. (1) Subject to the provisions of this section, presentment for payment of a cheque may be made by a banker (in this section referred to as the ‘collecting banker’) on his own behalf or on behalf of a customer or any other person to the banker on whom it is drawn (in this section referred to as the ‘drawee banker’) by notification to the drawee banker of the essential features of the cheque other than by its physical presentment, whether by the transmission of an electronic message or by any other means.

• (2) A drawee banker to whom a cheque is presented by notification in the manner provided for in subsection (1) of this section may, before the close of business on the next business day following receipt of such notification, request the collecting banker that the cheque be physically presented to him.

• (3) A request by the drawee banker for physical presentment of a cheque in accordance with subsection (2) of this section shall not constitute dishonour of the cheque by non-payment.

• (4) A cheque paid upon presentment in the manner provided for in subsection (1) of this section shall be deemed to have been paid in the ordinary course of business.

• (5) Where a cheque is presented for payment by notification in the manner provided for in subsection (1) of this section, nothing in this section shall be taken to relieve the collecting banker or the drawee banker from any liability in relation to the collection or payment of the cheque to which the collecting banker or the drawee banker would have been subject if the cheque had been physically presented for payment.

• (6) This section shall apply to—

  • (a) any document issued by a customer of a banker which, though not a bill of exchange, is intended to enable a person to obtain payment from that banker of the sum mentioned in the document,

  • (b) any document issued by a public officer which is intended to enable a person to obtain payment from the Paymaster General of the sum mentioned in the document but is not a bill of exchange, and

  • (c) any draft payable on demand drawn by a banker upon himself, whether payable at the head office or some other office of his bank,

  as it applies to cheques.

• (7) In this section, unless the context otherwise requires—

‘the essential features of the cheque’ includes—

- (*a*) the serial number of the cheque,

- (*b*) the identification code number of the drawee banker,

- (*c*) the account number of the drawer of the cheque,

- (*d*) the amount of the cheque as entered by the drawer of the cheque,

  and any such particulars as may be given in the form of letters or figures or any other code which as between bankers represent those particulars;

  ‘physical presentment’ means presentment of a cheque for payment in accordance with banking practice other than as provided for in subsection (1).”.

• (2) Nothing in the other provisions of this section shall apply to any bill drawn or, by virtue of section 89 of the Bills of Exchange Act, 1882, to any note made before the coming into operation of this section.

• (3) This section shall come into operation one month after the passing of this Act.

133 Supplementary provision to section 3 of Cheques Act, 1959.

133.—The Cheques Act, 1959, is hereby amended by the insertion of the following section after section 3:

“3A. Where a cheque is paid upon presentment in the manner provided for in subsection (1) of section 45A (inserted by section 132 of the Central Bank Act, 1989) of the Bills of Exchange Act, 1882, the collecting banker (within the meaning of the said section 45A) shall, for the purpose of section 3 of this Act, be deemed to be the banker on whom the cheque is drawn.”.

134 Power of Minister to direct suspension of certain business transactions, etc.

134.—(1) Whenever the Minister considers it necessary in the national interest or for the purpose of safeguarding the currency of the State, he may, after consulting the Bank, give a direction that in respect of a specified day or days a person to whom the direction relates shall not effect in the course of business any transaction, or any transaction of such a kind, as may be specified in the direction.