Europe adopts legislation to expedite e-payments

The European Union is in the process of integrating national payment systems to create a Single Euro Payments Area or SEPA. The initiative intends to facilitate electronic payments and services, such as direct debit and e-invoicing, throughout the EU and to protect consumers using this system. It also intends to bring into the system additional payment-service providers not only to foster competition and improve services to consumers, but also to comply with anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing standards.  

The legal foundation for this initiative is the Payment Services Directive. The European Parliament, which recently approved the text for this Directive, has forwarded the document to the EU Council for final adoption. Member States must transpose said Directive into national law by November 1st 2009.  The launching of the Single Euro Payments Area is scheduled for January 1st 2008 and expected to have reached a critical mass of users by the end of 2010.