Payments arena Europe

The structure of the European payments market is changing. Europe’s banks have traditionally operated distinct national payments infrastructures. However, it is accepted that everyone would benefit from a more open and consistent European payments market.

With this objective in mind, the European Commission has proposed a new legal framework for payments, under the title “Payments Services Directive”. In practice, two further developments are helping to shape the European payments market, namely the creation of a Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) and the creation of the European Payments Council (EPC), which is the decision making and coordination body of the European banking industry in relation to payments. Its purpose is to support and promote the creation of SEPA as a single harmonised, open and interoperable European “domestic” payments market.