ECB-RESTRICTED. Card payments in Europe a renewed focus on SEPA for cards

Transcription

1 ECB-RESTRICTED Card payments in Europe a renewed focus on SEPA for cards COGEPS 11 March 2014

2 SEPA WHERE DO WE STAND SEPA migration end-date (1 February 2014) was a key milestone (regardless of the additional 6 months transition phase) It should also be a start-date for a renewed focus on SEPA for cards In parallel to legislative proposals for a Regulation on interchange fees for card-based payment transactions and a revised PSD Moreover, ECB promotes development and deployment of innovative payments (e-commerce payments, m-payments) if possible as pan-european solutions based on the SEPA achievements (SCT, SDD) 2

3 CHANGING OUR WALLETS PAST PRESENT AND FUTURE? 3

4 A SEPA FOR (ALL) CARDS? Picture sources: westenberg.constantvzw.org and leroyaumedolympe.fr 4

5 WHAT S MISSING STILL Cardholder s perspective: card payments are not accepted as much as one would expect given the efficiency, safety and convenience compared to cash card payments are less accepted or even absent in specific sectors some cards, even though SEPA-compliant, are not accepted at locations where other SEPA-compliant cards are being accepted. Perspective of a merchant: decision to accept card payments will be influenced by expected unit costs, but there can also be technical restrictions merchants do not always have a great choice of acquirers, and cannot easily choose to use a foreign acquirer international retailers face different business practices and rules within SEPA, different functional and security requirements for their payment terminals. 5

6 ANGLES OF APPROACH Eurosystem to provide guidance to market participants on: - security of card payments / prevention of card fraud - separation of scheme management and processing entities and establishing a competitive card processing market - harmonising business practices and rules - standardisation efforts (setting requirements, writing specifications and their implementation). 6

7 KEY MESSAGES Security of card payments / prevention of card fraud SecuRe Pay recommendations for stricter security measures for CNP transactions via the internet and their implementation by PSPs and the governance authorities of payment schemes no later than 1 February Full migration to EMV (cards, terminals and transactions) for cardpresent transactions essential. Until all SEPA issued cards are chip-only, and as long as there are large parts of the world where EMV-migration has not taken place in full, non-emv transactions outside SEPA should be blocked by default. 7

8 KEY MESSAGES Separation of scheme management and processing entities and establishing a competitive card processing market Separation is a core element in increasing competition and efficiency in card payments. The principle of separation should apply at the corporate level, including, in particular, operational separation, information separation, financial/accounting separation, commercial separation and ideally also legal separation. Eurosystem reiterates its invitation to the industry to establish a SEPA card processing framework and a technical interoperability framework and strongly encourages all interested stakeholders to produce tangible results. 8

9 KEY MESSAGES Harmonising business practices and rules - pricing and fees Neutral stance on interchange fees, as this is for competition authorities or legislative instances, but should not lead to negative price signals towards payers / payees. Clarity is welcomed. Surcharging and/or rebating could be an instrument to steer users towards more efficient payment instruments, but should not be applied undifferentiated or misused to the payer s disadvantage. More transparency of fees is better for competition and efficiency. Core and basic card payment services are cashless alternative to banknotes and should be offered separately from other services. No more country-specific licences for issuing and acquiring. Scheme-internal fee differentiation based on geographic criteria for cross-border transactions within SEPA should disappear. 9

10 KEY MESSAGES Harmonising business practices and rules - steering practices Issuers should be free to decide which schemes/brands they want to issue on one and the same card; co-branding can contribute to reach, but not used as excuse to maintain national fragmentation. Merchants should have freedom to accept only those card schemes and/or brands best suited to their need. Differentiating / declining commercial cards if they involve higher fees than consumer cards. Merchants to decide not to accept cards that provide a low level of security or if the acquirer does not guarantee the full payment of authorised transactions. Customer and merchant agree jointly on conditions of payment. Practical solutions are needed, but should not replace or override the legal principle. 10

11 KEY MESSAGES Standardisation efforts (requirements, specifications and their implementation) Eurosystem welcomes CSG s inclusive work to standardise functional and security requirements. The world is larger than SEPA, but European requirements can go beyond, and be more ambitious, than in other parts of the world. Support for ISO for card messages in the terminal-toacquirer and acquirer-to-issuer domains. The labelling process is step towards further harmonisation in functional standardisation and technical interoperability of specifications (i.e. ability to communicate) is an essential part. A harmonised security evaluation and certification process for cards and terminals lowers market entry barrier for manufacturers. 11

12 CONCLUSIONS SEPA migration end-date of 1 February 2014 was crucial date and also the start-date for a renewed focus on SEPA for cards Still vast potential for increased use of payment cards. Economies of scale are untapped and increased efficiency can be achieved. Progress is needed and can be made in the fields of effective separation of scheme management and processing, a card processing framework, harmonisation of business practices and rules, and harmonisation of functional and security requirements and the subsequent standardisation of cards, payment terminals and message protocols. Eurosystem reinforces efforts for SEPA for cards a harmonised, competitive and innovative European card payment area. 12