EPI and EuroPA join forces to guarantee sovereignty

While the competitive battle was raging in Europe on the subject of the proposal for a sovereign and interoperable payment solution, against all expectations, the two players who were opposed so far, EuroPA (European Payments Alliance) and EPI (European Payments Initiative), recently announced their partnership. This announcement translates into a promise that has long been mentioned and allows us to overcome rivalries in order to create a real European giant of payment.

FACTS

• The news has just fallen, EuroPA and EPI have finally chosen to work together to develop a sovereign and pan-European payment solution.

• EuroPA represents Bancomat, Bizum, MB WAY (SIBS) and Vipps MobilePay. With EPI, they will now work to create a common payment solution at European level, in particular to facilitate cross-border payments.

• This will allow European citizens to send and receive smooth payments throughout the continent.

• In announcing their rapprochement, EPI and EuroPA stress their decision to propose a reinforced interconnectivity between their respective solutions to cover all payment practices in Europe.

• This agreement will initially cover 15 European countries, collectively representing more than 382 million people (84% of the population of the European Union and Norway). The two partners are also considering further integration of new markets, future members and partners in their offers.

• Their ongoing reconciliation is expected to be completed by the end of the summer.

ISSUES

• Avoid fratricidal war : The opposition of EPI and EuroPA represented a clear barrier to the realization of a sovereign payment project in Europe. The two projects brought together many members and partners and confronted each other face to face to face, cutting Europe in two instead of bringing it together and at the same time denaturing the very issue of creating these organisations.

• Defending a common interest : This opposition and the advances made by the two actors on their side were obviously counterproductive in the logic of promising a unique and interoperable solution. The association of EPI and EuroPa thus demonstrates the awareness of the actors involved and their real commitment to honouring their promise in the face of threats outside Europe.

• Promote interconnectivity : The association of EPI and EuroPA relies on the interconnectivity between existing local solutions rather than on a large replacement. Both partners stress that their decision has been supported by the European Commission and the Eurosystem.

PERSPECTIVE

• The announcement of this rapprochement represents a real consecration of Europe's power in the international payment market. EuroPA and EPI represent a very large association capable of fulfilling its promises.

• EuroPA brings together ten European member countries: Greece, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Poland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Andorra. he central system of Greek interbank payments, DIAS officializes his rapprochement with the Alliance.

• For its part, the project EPI aims to build with the banks a sovereign, interoperable and competitive instant payment infrastructure against the international giants of the sector and has just won the Luxembourg and Revolut.

Traduit automatiquement via Libretranslate / Automatically translated via Libretranslate