Electronic money and its influence on monetary policy

Innovations in the field of the electronic payment instruments were determined by a fast development of technologies and electronic commerce. Electronic money, as one of kinds of the electronic payment instruments, gradually becomes an important subject of research performed by representatives of economics and law sciences. By adopting the Directive 2000/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (of 18 September 2000) on the taking up, pursuit of and prudential supervision of the business of electronic money institutions and the Directive 2000/28/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (of 18 September 2000) amending the Directive 2000/12/EC relating to the taking up and pursuit of the business of credit institutions, the concerted regulation of legal relations in the field of electronic money was established in the European Union Law and now is being reviewed seeking, first of all, to soften some of requirements applied to the electronic money institutions. "Electronic money", following the Directive 2000/46/EB, shall mean the monetary value which is: (i) stored on an electronic device; (ii) issued on receipt of funds of an amount not less in value than the monetary value issued; (iii) accepted as means of payment by undertakings other than the issuer. Electronic money can be considered an electronic surrogate for coins and banknotes, which is stored on an electronic device such as a chip card or computer memory. Furthermore, it is prohibited to be engaged in activities on the electronic money issue for entities other than credit institutions. Meanwhile, Lithuania, on May 1st, 2004, having entered into the European Union as a full member state, has undertaken to harmonize the national law with the law of the European Union in the field of electronic money. When estimating the implementation of provisions of the European Union legal acts in the national law, it may be noticed that provisions of the European Union legal acts, as a matter of fact, have been duly transferred to the national law, with except of certain inaccuracies especially in the sense of terminology