After obtaining the corresponding approval certificates from the EPC, CaixaBank and Iberpay announce that their respective payment technology platforms are ready “to imminently process, as of June 22, the first SEPA Request-to-Pay in Europe.”
In parallel, CaixaBank, which has become the first bank in Europe “to obtain EPC approval for Request-to-Pay processing, is preparing to soon launch the first commercial service that will facilitate online and instantaneous management for companies of claims for unpaid bills by your customers through Request-to-Pay messaging.”
The Request-to-Pay, also called “Payment Request”, allows companies and individuals “to request instant payments from their customers or counterparties online, digitally and without friction.”
This new type of instant ‘pull’ payment (the process is initiated by the recipient of the payment) complements “the current instant transfers, which represent the ‘push’ payment (the payment is initiated by the payer).”
Spanish banks have been “promoting the adoption of this new European standard for some time and are working with Iberpay on its certification and incorporation into the service in the coming months.”
All this with the aim of creating the necessary network effect, “extending its massive use at the sector level and facilitating the development of all use cases and instant and digital payment solutions that this new functionality enables.”
As happened in 2017 with “the pioneering launch of instant transfers, the Spanish banking community is once again at the forefront in the development of new digital, instant and 24×7 payment services for its citizens and companies.”
CaixaBank was also “the first entity in Europe to carry out the first operation under the instant transfer scheme when it was launched.”
As noted in the update, CaixaBank claims it is “the leading financial group in Spain with a volume of assets of more than 618,000 million euros and a relevant position at the European level.”
In addition, CaixaBank has a strong presence in Portugal, where it controls 100% of BPI.
The group reportedly “has more than 20 million customers, the largest branch and ATM network in Spain and Portugal, and leadership in digital banking, with more than 11 million digital customers.”
Technology and innovation are key for CaixaBank. The entity says it “works every day to develop new models that allow it to respond to the demands and needs of its customers and that bring products, services and financial culture closer to all citizens.”
