European Payments Council Newsletter July 2012

30 July 2012

The July 2012 edition of the EPC Newsletter focuses on the most appropriate approach to fostering further integration of, and innovation within, the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).

This edition features four articles, which cover the ongoing innovations in the euro payments debate:

• Javier Santamaría points out that the European Union (EU) authorities considered full migration to harmonised SEPA payment schemes as the precondition to creating efficient and innovative euro payment services. In the euro area, SEPA will only be achieved by 1 February, 2014. He therefore questions the argument that a ‘lack’ of integration and innovation in today’s euro payments market justifies further regulatory intervention. The European Commission will communicate by the end of 2012 its vision for the next phase of SEPA and, in particular, its governance including the future role of the EPC.
• Günther Gall outlines the most important factors driving forward innovation in the market, including customer demand and a viable business model.
• Dirk Schrade highlights the main findings of the ‘Innovations in Retail Payments’ Report published by the Committee on Payments and Settlement Systems.
• Simon Crown and Maria Troullinou discuss the regulatory implications of the European Commission’s Green Paper ‘Towards an Integrated European Market for Card, Internet and Mobile Payments’.

With this edition, EPC includes a poll designed to identify the topics which are most relevant to EPC Newsletter readers.

Full Newsletter

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