ACI Worldwide has been working to support banks and financial institutions to comply with and prepare for the upcoming European Commission (EC) Mandate on Instant Payments. ACI’s Enterprise Payments Platform currently supports 20 banks with access and connectivity to TIPS and RT1, offering end-to-end instant payments, orchestration, and value-added services, combined with AI-powered fraud protection.

The company recently launched its ACI Instant Pay solution in Europe and the UK, allowing merchants to accept online, mobile, and in-store payments instantly via API integration with its Payments Orchestration Platform. A proposed EC law mandates banks, and financial institutions across Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) countries to offer instant payments under the SEPA Instant Credit Transfer scheme, at the same cost or lower than standard credit transfers. The new regulation is aimed at unlocking the benefits of instant payments for European economies.

Increased participation, simplified access, commercially attractive pricing, and new value-added services for consumers and businesses are some of the significant changes expected because of the mandate. As ACI Worldwide representatives have observed, the European Commission sees instant payments as a path to unlock economic growth and drive financial inclusion across its member states. Banks need to start working to comply with the EC Mandate.

It is expected that instant payments could help to secure the competitiveness of banks, financial services providers, and merchants. They can remove payments friction, contribute to greater liquidity, and improve the customer experience. Furthermore, banks need to evaluate whether they are maximizing existing instant payment rails in their market.

Ultimately, the extent to which they make instant payments part of their offering is a strategic decision. It seems that limiting their commitment to the minimum also means limiting their potential share of the future payments market. What is the impact? According to the European Commission, the instant receipt of funds could help European businesses unlock between EUR 1.34 and EUR 1.84 billion each year.

ACI Worldwide representatives cited by Yahoo Finance talked about the evolution of payments and emphasised that giving and receiving money electronically should be as instantaneous as handing over cash, particularly given the ‘always on’ nature of the transactional space. Instant payments can also have a beneficial impact when it comes to fraud prevention. Specifically, the company released a report in partnership with GlobalData showcasing APP scams as the top payment fraud threat in 2022, followed by card fraud and identity theft.

The report details that developed real-time payment markets are experiencing an epidemic of APP scams, yet real-time payments can be the most secure payment method, and banks and financial institutions can stay ahead of fraudsters and benefit from real-time payments by collaborating and leveraging the power of data science and AI. .