European Payments And Digital Finance: Harmonization, Clarification, And Trust

Summary

2023 has been a pivotal year for the world of payments and digital finance in Europe. Various legislative proposals have been published at the European level, including the reform of Directive 2015/2366 on payment services (known as "PSD2"), access to financial data, instant payments, and the digital Euro. Cryptocurrencies finally have their regulation, and the European Payments Initiative (EPI) has entered a testing phase.

These legislative texts aim to clarify, harmonize, and modernize the European payments landscape.

Development

On June 28, 2023, the European Commission published two legislative proposals concerning the reform of PSD2 and access to financial data. In December 2023, a compromise text was finally adopted for instant payments, the system on which the European Payments Initiative (EPI) is based.