The New Electronic Payment Services Landscape Developments In EU Legislation

On July 24, 2013, the European Commission issued legislative proposals to update and complement the current EU legal framework on payment services to develop further an EU-wide single market by promoting more competition, security and innovation in the field of electronic payments. The Commission noted that this move may be worth billions in savings for the European economy in the coming years, which will result in new business opportunities for a fast growing market.

Proposed New Payment Services Directive

Directive 2007/64/EC (the so-called PSD) introduced a harmonised regulatory regime for the provision of electronic payment services across the EU. The Commission has reviewed the operation of the 2007 PSD and proposes to replace it with a new directive (PSD2, available here) to broaden its scope of application and to fill the legal vacuum for certain newly emerged Internet service providers. It also addresses the inconsistency of application of existing rules by