Germany's ZAG register
Under sections 43 and 44 of the Zahlungsdiensteaufsichtsgesetz (ZAG), the German Payment Services Supervision Act that implements PSD2, BaFin keeps a public register of payment and e-money institutions. It covers German payment institutions, e-money institutions, account information service providers that are registered rather than authorised, and German branches of institutions from outside the EEA, together with their agents and EU branches. About 125 institutions are listed. Each entry shows the institution type, registered address and every payment service it is authorised for, with the date granted and, where relevant, the date the authorisation ended.
Institution types
| Type | Typical business |
|---|---|
| Zahlungsinstitut (payment institution) | Acquiring, money remittance, payment initiation, B2B and BNPL payment processing, fleet and fuel card issuers |
| E-Geld-Institut (e-money institution) | Prepaid cards, wallets, mobility and fuel payment schemes |
| Kontoinformationsdienstleistungsinstitut | Registered account information service providers (open banking data) |
| Zweigstelle gemäß § 42 ZAG | German branches of institutions from third countries |
Authorised services in the register
Services are listed by their ZAG reference: placing and withdrawing cash (§ 1(1) No. 1 and 2), direct debit, card and credit transfer business (No. 3 and 4), issuing payment instruments and acquiring (No. 5), money remittance (No. 6), payment initiation (No. 7) and account information services (No. 8), plus e-money business (§ 1(2)). The mix shows whether a company is an acquirer, a remitter, an open-banking provider or an e-money issuer. Many of Germany's large payment players are licensed as banks instead and do not appear here.
Who uses the list
- Banks and sponsor banks evaluating fintech partners
- Merchants and platforms choosing licensed payment providers
- Compliance, AML, KYC and regulatory reporting vendors
- Card schemes, processors and open-banking API providers
- Investors and acquirers screening licensed German fintechs