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French banks are moving the implementation of the Direct Debit scheme, in the Single Euro Payments Area, back to November 2010, announced the country’s SEPA Committee, setting the scene for a row with the European Commission who have been pushing for the original November 2009 start date to be adhered to.
The French SEPA Committee, jointly chaired by the Banque de France and French Banking Federation, said it has informed the relevant European authorities about its year-long delay in implementing the SEPA Direct Debit (SDD) scheme but it is likely to face pressure to rescind its decision, especially from the European Commission, although it may get support from other recalcitrant countries.
The slow adoption and haphazard introduction of the Payment Services Directive (PSD), which is supposed to provide the legal framework for harmonisation but is faltering as various countries implement 'opt-outs', is also likely to further delay the original SDD start date of November 2009. The opt-outs will ensure that the harmonisation of the payments scene across Europe is not perhaps as comprehensive as originally envisaged.
• In other payments news, Deutsche Bank, ignoring the potential delay in SEPA Direct Debit (SDD) implementation, is forging ahead by launching an outsourced ‘plug and play’ SEPA Connector, which will be targeted at debtor banks requiring a solution to ensure SDD compliance. The white label service is powered by Logica’s all payments solution (LAPS) and can also support the already introduced SEPA Credit Transfers (SCT) payment instruments.
In the first phase of this partnership, the SEPA Connector will enable debtor banks to view SDD transactions, manage rejects and returns, as well as upload files for further validation and processing. Deutsche Bank will also provide connectivity to EBA Clearing and its bilateral partners.
Michael Mueller, Managing Director of Wholesale Solutions, Global Transaction Banking at Deutsche Bank, said: "Attaining SEPA reachability and complying with SEPA Direct Debits places further strain on legacy technology for many banks. Through our partnership with Logica, we can provide our financial institution clients with access to SEPA clearing services based on best of breed technology. The SEPA Connector forms an integral part of our strategy for expanding the provision of outsourced services, while also presenting a strong business case for banks."
Deutsche Bank already uses Logica's payments hub to support its operations in 15 countries, which further enables easy roll-out of the SEPA Connector to the bank's financial institution clients.
• VocaLink, the technology infrastructure provider for the UK’s Bacs, Faster Payments and LINK ATM transactions, is receiving an investment of £60 million in equity capital from its shareholders. The new money is to strengthen its resilience and support the company’s expansion plans in Europe, ahead of the introduction of SDD.
Commenting on the investment Richard Hooper, acting Chairman of VocaLink, said: “This is a forward-thinking vote of confidence from our shareholders. It recognises their commitment to securing the future reliability and security of the payments industry. This investment will give us the opportunity to improve our services whilst enabling us to continue providing reliable and trusted support for our clients in difficult economic times.”
VocaLink has significantly expanded its product and service portfolio since its merger in 2007. Last year the company achieved two world firsts; Sweden’s national processor Bankgirocentralen (BGC) outsourced the majority of its payments processing to VocaLink and the Faster Payments Service was launched on the company’s real-time payment platform.
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