Summary

The account relationship is the basis of contractual relationships between credit institutions and clients. In European Union law, the provision of payment services is currently regulated by several pieces of legislation. One of the most important of these is the Directive on payment services 2007/64/EC, which has been transferred into Estonian law with the Paying Authorities and E-Money Institutions Act and the provisions of Division 2 of Chapter 40 of the Law of Obligations Act. In order to create an integrated market for electronic payments in euros and to establish a single set of conditions for common payment standards, rules, practices, and integrated payment processing, Regulation (EU) No. 260/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council was adopted. The payment accounts rules have been supplemented by Payment Accounts Directive 2014/92/EU, which shall be transposed into the law of Member States by 18 September 2016.

In addition to the legal provisions regulating the provision of payment services, legislation passed for the enforcement of European foreign and security policy have a significant impact on the conclusion of contractual relationships with credit and financing institutions.

The article views the concept and nature of payment accounts, the principle of the right to a formal account, and the content and nature of a payment transaction. The article analyses the judicial practice on account relationships which, in essence, denies the possibility of misidentification of a client and conceal­ment and disguise in money laundering schemes. The article provides a short overview of the norms regulating the establishment of account relationships and attempts to provide a solution on how an account relationship based on a settlement contract could be treated in view of public provisions.