The European Central Bank (ECB) has today published its first Report on the Migration towardsthe Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA), which describes the state of play of the migrationprocess in euro area countries towards the creation of a single market for credit transfers anddirect debits in euro across Europe, and provides guidance on the management of the transitionprocess.
The SEPA Migration End-date Regulationi established 1 February 2014 as the deadline for the
euro area migration to SEPA credit transfers and SEPA direct debits. The project is therefore
entering a critical stage. End-users such as public administrations and businesses, large and
small, have less than 11 months to ensure that their payment orders are made according to the
SEPA payment instruments so that they are not refused by payment service providers.ii
The report shows that most corporations have already completed the planning phase and know
what SEPA will mean for them in practical terms. However, when it comes to the actual
implementation, a number of companies have adopted very late internal deadlines, even as far
as to the end of 2013. This is a source of concern in particular when it comes to the migration to
the SEPA direct debit scheme. More worryingly, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and
local public administrations awareness of SEPA is still fragmented and the level of
preparedness is rather poor.
Late migration is highly undesirable in projects like SEPA, where many technical details need to
be reflected in end-users back-office systems and internal processes. In some cases,
companies could even face the risk of some level of disruption in their handling of payment
orders. Therefore, the Eurosystem strongly advocates that all stakeholders, including big
billers, public administrations and SMEs, migrate at the earliest stage possible, preferably by
the third quarter of 2013 at the latest, in order to avoid risks which could impact the wider supply
2
European Central Bank
Directorate General Communications and Language Services, Press and Information Division
Kaiserstrasse 29, D-60311 Frankfurt am Main
Tel.: +49 69 1344 7455, Fax: +49 69 1344 7404
Internet: http://www.ecb.europa.eu
Reproduction is permitted provided that the source is acknowledged.
chain and would put the SEPA migration at risk. To avoid such risks, payment service providers
should make customer servicing channels ready for SEPA transactions as soon as possible
(and no later than the second quarter of 2013), and should also devote sufficient resources to
familiarise end-users with technical, business and contractual issues related to migration to the
SEPA schemes.
While the process is technical in nature, it has a direct bearing on the successful integration of
the payments market in euro, which will facilitate trade, increases competition and innovation,
fosters financial integration and is a key element in the completion of the monetary union.
Adapting to SEPA involves adjusting a lot of technical and business procedures over a limited
period of time. Projects of this kind should not be left to the last moment, said Benoît Coeuré,
Member of the Executive Board of the ECB. I hope that all stakeholders will take migration to
SEPA Payment instruments as a top priority.
The report is available on the ECBs website at www.ecb.europa.eu.
i Regulation (EU) 260/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2012
ii In line with Regulation (EU) 260/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2012
Bron: politics.be
The SEPA Migration End-date Regulationi established 1 February 2014 as the deadline for the
euro area migration to SEPA credit transfers and SEPA direct debits. The project is therefore
entering a critical stage. End-users such as public administrations and businesses, large and
small, have less than 11 months to ensure that their payment orders are made according to the
SEPA payment instruments so that they are not refused by payment service providers.ii
The report shows that most corporations have already completed the planning phase and know
what SEPA will mean for them in practical terms. However, when it comes to the actual
implementation, a number of companies have adopted very late internal deadlines, even as far
as to the end of 2013. This is a source of concern in particular when it comes to the migration to
the SEPA direct debit scheme. More worryingly, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and
local public administrations awareness of SEPA is still fragmented and the level of
preparedness is rather poor.
Late migration is highly undesirable in projects like SEPA, where many technical details need to
be reflected in end-users back-office systems and internal processes. In some cases,
companies could even face the risk of some level of disruption in their handling of payment
orders. Therefore, the Eurosystem strongly advocates that all stakeholders, including big
billers, public administrations and SMEs, migrate at the earliest stage possible, preferably by
the third quarter of 2013 at the latest, in order to avoid risks which could impact the wider supply
2
European Central Bank
Directorate General Communications and Language Services, Press and Information Division
Kaiserstrasse 29, D-60311 Frankfurt am Main
Tel.: +49 69 1344 7455, Fax: +49 69 1344 7404
Internet: http://www.ecb.europa.eu
Reproduction is permitted provided that the source is acknowledged.
chain and would put the SEPA migration at risk. To avoid such risks, payment service providers
should make customer servicing channels ready for SEPA transactions as soon as possible
(and no later than the second quarter of 2013), and should also devote sufficient resources to
familiarise end-users with technical, business and contractual issues related to migration to the
SEPA schemes.
While the process is technical in nature, it has a direct bearing on the successful integration of
the payments market in euro, which will facilitate trade, increases competition and innovation,
fosters financial integration and is a key element in the completion of the monetary union.
Adapting to SEPA involves adjusting a lot of technical and business procedures over a limited
period of time. Projects of this kind should not be left to the last moment, said Benoît Coeuré,
Member of the Executive Board of the ECB. I hope that all stakeholders will take migration to
SEPA Payment instruments as a top priority.
The report is available on the ECBs website at www.ecb.europa.eu.
i Regulation (EU) 260/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2012
ii In line with Regulation (EU) 260/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 March 2012
Bron: politics.be