payment scheme management
The primary mission of the is to manage its four payment schemes, which are the rules underlying most euro credit transfers and direct debits in the 36 European countries using the schemes. These schemes are adhered to by thousands of payment service providers ( ) in Europe and are used to make over 46 billion transactions each year. The also manages a one-leg out instant credit transfer scheme to support international instant payments between countries and non- countries.
Composed of rulebooks and implementation guidelines, the schemes are regularly updated to reflect market needs and evolutions in technical standards. All payment stakeholders have the opportunity to shape the future of payments by participating in the evolution of the schemes.
Participating in the payment schemes
If you are a wishing to adhere to the payment schemes, read more about the criteria for participation. In addition, the Register of Participants is available for consultation to any individual or organisation wishing to know which are able to send and / or receive euro transactions.
The Credit Transfer ( ) scheme enables any individual or business to easily and conveniently move money from one account to another. It can be used for one-off or recurring payments and for single or bulk payments, which saves time for the payer. Every year more than 24 billion credit transfers in Europe are made based on the scheme.
The Instant Credit Transfer ( ) scheme is operational since November 2017. This scheme is the first of its kind to enable the 24/7/365 transfer of money (up to 100,000 euros) in an area as large as in less than ten seconds. The maximum amount and duration of the transaction are not set in stone and will be reviewed annually from 2018 onwards. In addition, can bilaterally or multilaterally agree on a higher maximum amount and shorter execution time.
The offers two direct debit schemes: one designed primarily for consumers, the Direct Debit ( ) Core scheme, and one exclusively for businesses, the Business-to-Business (B2B) scheme. The scheme is mandatory for offering euro direct debit for consumers, whereas it is optional for to offer services based on the scheme. Over 21 billion transactions every year are based on the schemes.
The One-Leg Out (OLO) Instant Credit Transfer ( ) scheme is the newest scheme dedicated to international instant credit transfers. It covers the set of rules, practices and standards to achieve interoperability for the provision and operation of the Euro Leg of an international instant credit transfer agreed at inter-payment service provider ( ) level within .
for cards
Being able to pay with a national card while travelling in Europe is one of the most tangible benefits of payments harmonisation across . Card is Europeans’ favourite cashless payment instrument. The contributes to increased cards standardisation by participating in the work of the European Cards Stakeholders Group and also undertakes initiatives of its own.
for mobile
In our increasingly digital society, mobile phones are used to pay either in a face-to-face situation (at a merchant’s store, for example), in which case we refer to ‘mobile proximity payments’, or independently of the payer’s and payee’s locations. In the latter situation, we speak of ‘remote mobile payments’ used for shopping online or for Person-to-Person payments. The contributes to the interoperability of mobile payments at the European level and to the improvement of their convenience, safety, reliability and cost-effectiveness.
for cash
Cash is still the first method of retail payment in several European countries, though its share among retail payments is decreasing. action in this area has two purposes: reducing the cost of cash, which is considerable, and harmonising cash services in Europe, which should improve both the cost-effectiveness of cash and the quality of the cash distributed.