The views expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and should not be attributed to the European Payments Council.
At its 24 November 2021 meeting, the Board accepted the Euro Retail Payments Board’s ( ) invitation to act as Scheme Manager for a new Single Euro Payments Area ( ) Payment Account Access ( ) scheme. To develop the scheme, the Board established the Multi-Stakeholder Group ( MSG). We interviewed the co-chairs of the MSG, Arturo González Mac Dowell (Tink) and Christian Schäfer (Deutsche Bank), to shed light on the background, objectives and activities of the MSG.
First, how did you get involved with the MSG?
Arturo: We were both already actively involved as co-chairs of the Working Group on a Application Programming Interface ( ) Access scheme, which submitted its first report to the June 2019 meeting. The Working Group was put on hold for a while, but was reactivated after the implementation of the revised Payment Services Directive ( ) and after agreement was reached on the commercial baseline.
The Working Group’s next phase on a Access scheme started in December 2020. We had the mission of determining how to reap the full benefits of and beyond through a scheme-based approach, by defining the key elements of such a scheme. It included business requirements, governance arrangements and a standardised interface, whilst taking into account that:
1)
constitutes the baseline,
2) the scope is ‘premium’ services, and
3) a fair distribution of value and risk is ensured.
The final report was submitted to the June 2021 meeting and contained two key recommendations. In line with the first recommendation and the requirements outlined in the report, the invited the to take up the role of Scheme Manager for payment accounts. The second recommendation - which is outside the ’s scope - consists of:
- exploring the implementation for financial asset classes beyond payments via the identification of an appropriate host for such a multi-stakeholder project, and
- framing the ecosystem for asset classes beyond finance to be able to move towards an open data economy in Europe.
Christian: Given our extensive experience of co-leading the Working Group, the invited us both to take up the role of co-chairs of the MSG, which we gladly accepted.
It gives us an opportunity to help drive ‘open payments’ in the through a scheme-based approach that unlocks and creates value whilst allowing for a fair distribution of value and risk between actors.
What is the main objective of the MSG?
Christian: The MSG will be responsible for the development of a scheme. In line with the requirements defined in the June 2021 Working Group report on a Access scheme, the MSG will operate with the legal and regulatory requirements of constituting its 'baseline’. However, it will also go beyond this baseline to encompass value-added services that may be provided in the context of ‘open banking’ as a natural evolution of .
What are the expected benefits behind the scheme?
Arturo: First, we anticipate that the scheme will facilitate the move in Europe towards an ‘open data society’. If implemented the right way, this move can create a wealth of innovation opportunities that feature a whole set of completely new client experiences accompanied by new revenue streams for market actors.
Second, it is important to note that the scheme builds on investments made in the context of . It is in line with European Union ( ) legislation, supported by the relevant institutions and developed collaboratively with the retail payment industry (both supply and demand) as represented in the .
The scheme will enable ‘premium’ payment services beyond , ensuring harmonisation, interoperability and reachability across Europe.
Third, the scheme will be ‘complementary’ to existing schemes and as such it could further drive their adoption and use.
Last but not least, we firmly believe that the scheme could be a stepping-stone towards ‘open finance’ beyond payments and ‘open data’ beyond finance.
What’s next in store for the MSG?
Christian: The MSG is currently busy preparing the first draft version of the scheme rulebook. Our goal is to launch a 90-day public consultation by the end of May 2022 (subject to Board approval) to give the wider market an opportunity to share their views on this first draft version. The final version of the scheme rulebook’s first release is anticipated to be published on the website by 30 November 2022 (subject to Board approval).
In this context, to ensure maximum stakeholder involvement and contribution, the has also established a dedicated scheme interest group. Following a call for participants launched on the website on 25 October 2021*, this group consists of non- members who are not represented in the MSG but are interested in participating in the development of an scheme. The interest group will regularly receive the unpublished draft deliverables of the MSG for input, and their contributions will be fed into the work of the MSG. In addition, a few virtual meetings will be organised before key milestones in the development of the scheme. In fact, a first successful scheme introduction session already took place on 21 January 2022.
(*interested parties can still join the scheme’s interest group, against a fixed contribution of € 3,000).
Your reactions
If you would like to comment on this article, please identify yourself with your first and last name. Your name will appear next to your comment. Email addresses will not be published. Please note that by accessing or contributing to the discussion you agree to abide by the EPC website conditions of use.
Christian Schäfer
Christian is a Director in Deutsche Bank’s Corporate Bank, responsible as Product Management Head for Payments globally. He has held various regional and global product management positions at Deutsche Bank.
Christian graduated from the University of Mannheim in 1997 with a Master in Business Administration and Computer Science and holds a Diploma in Strategy & Innovation from the University of Oxford. He lectures negotiations and managerial skills at the University of Mannheim.
Arturo González Mac Dowell
Arturo is the CEO of Eurobits Technologies, a Tink company. His career has been marked by his role in the introduction of high-tech products and services to the financial sector. His pioneering work in financial technology has led to innovative services like electronic payments, mobile banking and electronic invoicing. Eurobits has been offering services now classified as Account Information Service in Europe since 2004 to some of the Eurozone and LATAM top banks, making Eurobits the pioneer in this market. Arturo launched Eurobits, went through and MBO and ultimately sold the company to Tink during 2020. Eurobits is a signatory to the Future of European Fintech which has campaigned for fair access under . Arturo is the Vice-Chairman of the European Third Party Providers Association and represents the ETPPA at the and the .