Payment services in the civil law of Ukraine and their legal nature

The subject of the study encompasses the rights and obligations of the parties during the provision of payment services. It is necessary to establish the peculiarities of the legal regulation of payment services in Ukraine and the EU, determine the civil-law nature of the service provision contract, identify the legal bonds between participants of the payment market. The normative and doctrinal approaches to defining the concept of a payment service have been systematized, with the concepts of a payment transaction and a payment instruction identified as its components. Based on the results of the study, it has been substantiated that the update of national legislation in the field of payment services was driven not only by the need to align it with EU standards, but also by the development of digital technologies, the expansion of the payment services market, and the necessity to protect consumer rights, with reference to relevant statistical data from the National Bank of Ukraine. The peculiarities of the payment service provision contract are clarified, its civil-law nature is established, and the elements of other contractual structures included in the contract are identified. The legal relationships between participants in payment legal relations are substantiated as well as the specifics of civil-law liability. The legal characteristics of the payment services agreement have been analyzed. The specific features of its legal nature have been identified, particularly the presence of elements of other civil law contracts, such as contracts of mandate, commission, and agency. Payment services are examined from the perspective of consumer protection, and the specific features of state regulation of the payment services market are outlined, taking into account law enforcement practices and the fundamental position of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, which is oriented toward consumer protection. This is done in light of the characteristics of the entities involved in legal relations regarding the provision of such services. The author concludes that payment services are a vital component of the financial system, as they ensure the effective operation of cashless transactions, facilitate the redistribution of financial resources between businesses and individuals, and support the development of the digital economy.