Legal News

22 November 2023, the Convention between the Bank of Spain and the College of Real Estate and Commerce Registrars of Spain on the use of data related to real estate register statistics was finalized. Publication of this agreement in the Official State Bulletin (BOE), in which it is listed as an appendix to this decision, is required.

AGREEMENT

between the Bank of Spain and the College of Real Estate and Commercial Registrars of Spain on the use of data relating to real estate register statistics

Parties

on the one hand, Mr. Ángel Gavilán González, acting for and on behalf of the Bank of Spain, with Tax ID Q2802472G and address at 48 Alcal Street, Madrid, in his capacity as Director General of Economics and Statistics of the Bank of Spain, authorized to sign this agreement by Executive Committee Decision of 17 November 2023;

and on the other hand, Mrs. M. Emilia Adan Garcia, adult, with an address in Madrid, acting for and on behalf of the Colegio de Registros de Real Estate y Comerciales de España (hereinafter referred to as the Colegio de Registros), with TIN Q2863012G and an address at 21 Diego de Leon Street, in Madrid, in her capacity as President of the aforementioned institution, in accordance with the representation granted to her under Article 23 of the Decree of April 14, 1997, which approves its statutes. This agreement is entered into pursuant to a decision of the Government at its meeting on July 4, 2023.

The two parties recognize each other as having sufficient legal capacity and representation to enter into this agreement and, pursuant thereto,

I agree to enter into this agreement and, accordingly,

The agreements between the College of Registrars and the Bank of Spain have a long history. The first agreements were signed in the early 1990s. The first convention on the use by the Bank of Spain of data related to real estate register statistics was signed on February 23, 2006. Since then, the Bank of Spain has effectively received these statistics on a monthly basis, thus improving the quality of the public service provided by the College of Registrars by providing the data and by the Bank of Spain by contributing to the technical quality of the information.

Since the second quarter of 2004, the College of Registrars has published each quarterly forecast called "real estate registry statistics" through its Statistical Data Processing Center, as a result of the preliminary work carried out to create and implement a permanent real estate information system known by the same name. This work is the result of an initiative of the Board of the College of Registrars, which considered that the vast amount of information held in the repository of property registers could be very useful for studying an important sector such as real estate.

The Bank of Spain, as part of its tasks as specified in the Law, in particular article 13/1994 of June 1, 1994, on the independence of the Bank of Spain, follows the development of the Spanish economy, so it was interested in using more detailed information from this material, which, by its nature, does not fall within the scope of official publications. In this context, in 2006, as already mentioned, the first convention on the use by the Bank of Spain of data related to real estate register statistics was signed.

But this information is also very useful for other functions assigned to the Bank of Spain, such as: compilation of statistics, financial and macroprudential soundness studies and supervision of financial institutions.

To ensure that this information is used by the Bank of Spain within the scope of these functions, the College of Registrars and the Bank of Spain deem it necessary to conclude this cooperation agreement in accordance with the provisions of Law 40/2015 of October 1, 2015 on the legal regime of the open sector.

CLAUSES

First. Subject. The Bank of Spain and the College of Registrars have agreed for the latter to transfer to the former the raw microdata on real estate register statistics (hereinafter referred to as "microdata") for the purpose of using them in the framework of statistics, studies, analyses, financial and macroprudential soundness studies and supervision of financial institutions that the Bank of Spain carries out as part of its tasks.

Second. Obligations of the College of Registrars. The College of Registrars of Spain will provide the Bank of Spain with microdata on real estate (sales transactions), mortgages and related parameters, with the variable identifiers and classification data specified in the single annex to this agreement. This information will refer to the periods (months) available at the time of the agreement and subsequent updates.

Three. Obligations of the Bank of Spain. Bank of Spain commits:

• Not to distribute the database obtained or any of its units to third parties.
• Identify the source of the information on which the work carried out using real estate data is based, directly or indirectly.
• Propose to the Spanish College of Registrars technical proposals that may be important to improve the usefulness and/or dissemination of the reports prepared by the Spanish College of Registrars on the basis of real estate register statistics.

Fourth. The duration and effectiveness of the agreement. The Agreement has a term of four years, with an option to renew by mutual agreement of the parties for up to four additional years prior to its completion. In order for an agreement to be effective, it must be registered in the Bank of Spain's Electronic Register of Agreements.

Despite the agreed term of validity and based on the voluntary nature of the subject matter of this agreement, either party may unilaterally terminate the agreement by giving two months' written notice to the other party.

Fifth. Personal Data Protection. The transfer of microdata from the College of Registrars to the Bank of Spain, referred to in the second clause of this agreement, does not include the transfer of personal data that directly identifies a natural person. However, identifiable personal data such as cadastral number and unique registration code (CRU) will be transferred.

The processing of said personal data, as well as the personal data of the representatives and contact persons named in this agreement, shall be carried out in accordance with applicable personal data protection legislation and, in particular, with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and the free movement of such data and repealing Directive 95/46/EU (General Data Protection Regulation), as well as with the rest of the existing legislation on the protection of personal data.

The personal data provided by the parties will be processed by both parties solely for the purpose of concluding and executing this agreement based on the provisions of Article 6.1.(b) of the General Regulation on the Protection of Personal Data (RGPD) and to comply with the obligations imposed by the relevant legislation and public interest powers on both parties based on the provisions of Article 6.1.(c) and (e) of the RGPD. In particular, the Bank of Spain undertakes not to use the data transmitted by the College of Registrars for any purpose not provided for in this agreement.

The said personal data will not be disclosed to third parties, unless required by regulatory obligation. Upon expiration of their retention period or in the event of the exercise of the right of deletion, they will be blocked to allow for the examination of possible legal obligations, until the expiration date, after which they will be deleted.

A protocol will also be established for the exchange of information between the College of Registrars and the Bank of Spain, which will ensure that personnel accessing the information must be properly identified and authorized, and a number of means and security measures will be established to ensure the secure exchange of information. In the event of a security breach in the exchange of information, the parties undertake to immediately exchange information about it once it has been identified.

The interested parties whose personal data are processed by the parties may exercise their rights of access, rectification, opposition, erasure, and other rights provided by the RGPD by documenting their identity as follows:

The Board of Registrars: by sending an e-mail to [email protected].

Bank of Spain: in person or by mail to c/ Alcal, 48, 28014 Madrid (A/A deputy for personal data protection) or electronically, in accordance with the procedures specified in the Bank of Spain's privacy policy.

The parties will inform the interested parties whose personal data are processed of the provisions provided for in this clause, unless the requirements of applicable personal data protection legislation do not require such information, as well as of the possibility of filing a complaint with the Personal Data Protection Commissioners or directly with the Spanish Agency for Personal Data Protection if it is considered that their rights have been violated.

In the event that personal data other than those mentioned in the first and second paragraphs of this clause is transferred between the parties in connection with the execution of the agreement, their processing shall also comply with the provisions of this clause.In addition, the parties will ensure that their employees comply with applicable personal data protection laws.

Sixth. Modification of the agreement.

This agreement may be modified by mutual consent by additions when necessary to better fulfill its subject matter or to accommodate changes in the law affecting its contents.

Second. Reasons for termination of the agreement.

This agreement may be terminated if one of the following reasons for termination occurs:

• a) Upon expiry of its term and termination within a specified period of time (15 days' notice).
• b) In case of unanimous agreement of the parties.
• c) By decision of any party notified of the termination two months in advance.
• d) In the event of default and default by one of the signatories.
• d) Upon a court decision which makes its invalidity public.
• e) For any other reason not mentioned above, provided for in the agreement or in other legislation.

The coordinating and monitoring committee to be established will be the competent body to review and evaluate inaccuracies in the agreement reported by any party in relation to the mutual obligations and commitments they undertake.

Eighth. Coordination and monitoring committee.

The agreement provides for a coordinating and monitoring committee on which both parties will be represented and which will be responsible for the following functions:

• To act as a channel of communication between the two organizations, ensuring prompt interaction and resolution of problems that may arise. The members of the committee will act on behalf of the parties to make decisions concerning the implementation of the agreement.
• Monitor the fulfillment of the obligations under this agreement, defining the criteria and measures necessary for their proper execution.
• Facilitate the resolution of interpretation and implementation issues arising from the agreement.
• Propose the conclusion of special supplementary agreements to this agreement.

The committee will consist of representatives from both organizations. Specifically:

- On the part of the College of Registrars: Director of the Statistical Data Center of the College of Registrars of Spain.

- On the part of the Bank of Spain: Director of the Statistics Department.

The committee will meet whenever necessary for the successful development of the actions provided for in the agreement and at least annually.

Ninth. Nature, jurisdiction and competence.

This instrument is an agreement in accordance with the provisions of Article 47 of Law 40/2015, dated October 1, 2015, on the legal regime of the open sector, and is not subject to the application of public contracts legislation in accordance with the provisions of Article 6.1 of Law 9/2017, dated November 8, 2017, on open sector contracts.

Hence, this agreement is subject to the legal regime provided for in Chapter VI of the provisional title of Law 40/2015, of October 1, 2015, on the legal regime of the open sector.

Disputes regarding the interpretation and execution of this agreement will be dealt with within the coordination and control committee and, in case of impossibility, legal actions arising from this agreement will be dealt with by the administrative courts in the city of Madrid.

Tenth. Consequences of breach.

The consequences applicable in the event of default and the obligations assumed by each party are termination of the agreement.

In the event of default of the obligations assumed by either party in this agreement, the other party may direct the breaching party to fulfill, within thirty days of such notice, the obligations deemed to have been breached. This requirement will be communicated to the coordination and monitoring committee of the agreement. If the breach continues after the expiration of this period, the other party will notify the other party that there is cause for termination and the agreement will be deemed terminated.

Closure. Both the College of Registrars of Spain and the Bank of Spain hope that through this agreement they will be able to continue to provide public services in line with the initiatives that both institutions adopted in the early 90s.

Signed:- Director General of Economics and Statistics of the Bank of Spain, Ángel Gavilán González. - Chair of the College of Registrars, Maria Emilia Adan Garcia.