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The solution, to be created by the European Payments Initiative (EPI), will challenge the dominance held by US card issuer giants Mastercard and Visa in Europe. In the coming weeks, banks start implementation through the creation of an interim company in Brussels, Belgium. The EPI expects the solution to be in operation by 2022.
Member banks of the EPI span five European countries. These include Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain. The solution they’re building will deliver pan-European cards for consumers and merchants. It will also offer a digital wallet and peer-to-peer (P2P) payments system. The banks say they are creating “a new standard means of payment for European consumers and merchants”. The idea is “to supersede the fragmented landscape that currently still exists”.
