Europe’s payment landscape is known to be complex for numerous reasons. It has been characterised with a wide spectrum of payment systems, from cash, cheques, to cards, with more than 50% of the financial transactions in Europe made in cash. While these systems have been in place for a long time, there is a significant need to adapt to the new digital payment landscape, that is still fragmented within Europe. This situation is emphasized by the ongoing spread of COVID-19 that has significantly accelerated the digitalisation of payments, and generated a clear shift from physical cash to digital and contactless payment instruments. As a result, banks are urged to simplify the current payment landscape to support and boost the growth of a unified single European market.

The European Payments Initiative is the new European banking scheme launched by a group of major European banks and third-party processors. The ambition behind this project is to create a unified, innovative, pan-European payment solution, leveraging instant payment, offering card payment solutions and a digital wallet across Europe. The solution aims to become a new standard in payments, for European consumers and merchants, across all types of retail transactions including in-store, online, cash withdrawal and peer-to-peer.

What are the challenges for EPI's end-to-end Implementation?

As this opportunity comes with great benefits, banks can also face multiple challenges when implementing it. Indeed, as a new payment scheme, EPI has its own protocols, which can raise several questions from the banks: 

-       How to support the new EPI instant payment Wallet?

-       How to benefit from the convergence of the Card and Wallets, rather than supporting the two in a segregated way?

-       How to handle the specific nature of EPI which is a full real-time instant payment system?

-       How to manage co-branding and/or tri-branding cards (in case of Local scheme/ EPI/ International scheme)? How to leverage the flexibility offered by EPI for bi-lateral agreements?

Supporting those capabilities may have an impact on those banks’ existing platforms. Banks need to define how they will be supporting EPI in the future: will they upgrade or replace their platforms?

How can PowerCARD help you face these challenges?

Taking all into consideration, it is key for banks to work towards the integration of a compatible system that can successfully implement this initiative. HPS understands all the difficulties that can be encountered when implementing a new solution within the payment ecosystem and has in-depth experience in issuing and acquiring solutions (cards and wallets managed on the same platform) in European and international markets.

While the final specifications are expected from EPI at a later stage, HPS reviewed the available information and use cases provided so far: EPI integration will be added seamlessly on HPS roadmap, with no major impact on HPS’ digital payments platform – PowerCARD.  

Thanks to HPS extensive and acute expertise in implementing new schemes (domestic schemes, instant payments schemes, mobile payment/money schemes, etc.) and many other protocols all over the globe, today PowerCARD is deployed in 90+ countries, by over 450 users.

To learn more about the how HPS can support you with EPI, please contact: sales@hps-worldwide.com.