EPC: Green payments: sustainability by design for a more viable future

28 February 2023

Currently, more and more companies talk about sustainability and are starting to take action to change their products to become more environmentally friendly and create a positive impact on society.

We begin our series of interviews focusing on sustainability in the payments industry with Anne-Claude Tichauer, Head of Transformation and Sustainable Product Design at Worldline, to learn more about how this company is integrating 'greener' practices into their business.

In your opinion, what are the most effective ways to make payments more sustainable?

It is increasingly becoming clear that the need to make payments more sustainable is a given and that the payments industry has no other choice than to find and implement – as quickly as possible – measures that will turn the overall value chain of payment into something more sustainable and green.

To put this in context, worldwide Internet traffic was multiplied by 17 between 2010 and 2020 and has kept on increasing exponentially since then. Online purchasing (and thus also online payments) contributes considerably to that growth, but instore purchasing also relies broadly on the internet and networks, not to mention the fact that electronic funds-transfer point-of-sale devices (EFT-POS) are electronic with a strong impact on carbon footprint. They are made of around fifty different sorts of metal, among other components like plastic. If anything, the latest reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) should alert all of us to the urgency of the current situation and the need to act to safeguard the future.

So, now that this has been clarified briefly: what options does the payments industry have to provide greener payments?

• What I can observe right now is that the required level of coordination and collaboration within the payment ecosystem poses a challenge. Most companies in the payments industry currently focus on their environmental impact with little insight into the complete ecosystem and no oversight on biodiversity impact. This is obviously not to be condemned but it is not enough, and I see that as a significant obstacle to overcome. I would suggest a more systemic approach. No single company can tackle the issue alone, which is why collaboration is vital. It needs to be end to end. That is both the most significant challenge and the most effective way to tackle the issue.
• This requires a change in attitudes and approaches. Sustainability by design (green payment by design) is a concept that many entities are currently trying to introduce into their corporate strategies and environmental commitment plans. It's about being proactive and recognising failings and opportunities to improve and change immediately.
• Regulation can partly aid with making payments more sustainable and can certainly act as a driver, but I don’t believe this is the only path. In my opinion, it's really up to all actors within given industries to gather, discuss and collaborate on how they can adjust and contribute together. It needs to be a team effort.
• The payments industry also has a role to play when it comes to consumers’ habits by helping them to consume better, more locally and second-hand, for instance. I will come back to this in more detail in the last question of the interview.

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