On May 1 2004 Latvia joined the European Union, and thereby undertook to obey EU law and implement its provisions into the national legislation. Therefore, the Latvian Parliament (Saeima) has adopted several substantial amendments to the legal acts regulating provision of financial services in Latvia by credit institutions registered in the Member States of the EU or EEA, outsourcing functions of credit institutions and reorganization and winding up of credit institutions.
In particular, significant amendments have been made to the Credit institution law and the Law on the Financial Instruments Market.
The Credit institution law
1. Provision of financial services
The amendments to the Credit institution law have introduced several provisions concerning activities of credit institutions registered in the Member States of the EU or EEA. The said provide that banks registered in the European Union or European Economic Area may open branches in Latvia without obtaining the licence
