Benzinga | Jul 6, 2021 09:04AM EDT

Wish Granted Payment Institution License For The EU

The license is a first step toward allowing Wish to process all EU payments on its platform

ContextLogic B.V. ("CLBV"), a Dutch subsidiary of ContextLogic Inc. (d/b/a/ Wish) (NASDAQ:WISH), today announced it has been granted a Payment Services License by the Dutch Central Bank (De Nederlandsche Bank N.V., "DNB").

The new Payment Services License will enable Wish to process transactions and increase control over the payments value chain in a compliant manner, while also reducing reliance on third parties. In addition to the Netherlands, the license will be passported to the other European markets where Wish operates. Wish will initially utilize the license to pay its EU merchants directly and will explore other payment services in the future. The license will not have an impact on consumers in Europe.

"The granting of this license is an exciting first step towards becoming a payments services provider in Europe," said Ward Homminga, Regional General Manager of CLBV. "Not only will it deliver cost savings as we eventually maintain control over our payments processes, but it will also provide a framework to explore opportunities in the payment services space."

The provision of payment services is subject to the European Payment Services Directive 2 ("PSD2") as implemented in the European countries in which CLBV operates. In view of such implementation, CLBV applied for a license to act as a payment institution. As a payments institution, CLBV is now under the supervision of DNB and, as such, is required to comply with rules applicable to payment institutions.