COBALT advised UAB Bitė Lietuva in obtaining a licence of an electronic money institution

COBALT advised UAB Bitė Lietuva, one of the largest mobile operators in Lithuania, providing high quality mobile services, in obtaining a limited-purpose licence of an electronic money institution. The licence issued to the company by the Board of the Bank of Lithuania authorises to carry out activities related to issuance of electronic money and provision of payment services.

The licence will enable the company to offer services to private and corporate customers which allow safe transfer of money in just a few seconds knowing only the recipient’s phone number. The company will offer customers to create their own accounts and by using the instant payment system to transfer money to other individuals or to pay for online purchases of goods or services.

By starting to provide instant payment services UAB Bitė Lietuva will join the National Payments Strategy infrastructure development project implemented by the Bank of Lithuania. It is expected that this step will help to reduce the use of cash, promote competition in the payment services market as well as expand and improve modern payment options. It is foreseen that other major players on the market for telecommunications services will also join the project.

COBALT team advised UAB Bitė Lietuva on all issues related to obtaining the licence, drafted documents required for obtaining the licence and participated in the coordination of documents. The team was led by Akvilė Bosaitė, Partner and Head of Banking & Finance Practice Group, and Associate Monika Kriūnaitė.