Class action law firm Shine Lawyers has announced that it is considering legal action against EML Payments, over its failure to notify the market of regulatory and governance issues affecting its subsidiary, PFS Card Services Ireland Ltd.
Last month, the Central Bank of Ireland wrote to PFS to raise concerns about the risk of money laundering and terrorism financing within the business, as well as about the company’s risk management framework and governance.
Shine’s class action practice leader Joshua Aylward said in a statement that the Central Bank of Ireland wrote to PFS on May 13 and there was a delay in responding which constitutes a breach of continuous disclosure rules.
Aylward said: “EML did not request a trading halt for almost four days after learning of these concerns and then took another 48 hours to inform the market.”
“Our claim will allege that EML failed in its obligations, significantly impacting share prices for thousands of investors. Investors who purchased shares between 19 December 2020 and 17 May 2021 are encouraged to register their interest on our website for this class action.”
EML’s statement to the ASX on May 19 says that in its correspondence the Central Bank of Ireland states that it “is minded to issue directions” to PFS pursuant to the Central Bank Act.
The directions, if made, “could materially impact” the European operations of the prepaid financial services business, including potentially restricting PFS’s activities under its Irish authorisation.