The European Commission is putting forward proposals to bring payments and the wider financial sector into the digital age. These rules will further improve consumer protection and competition in electronic payments, and will empower consumers to share their data in a secure way so that they can get a wider range of better and cheaper financial products and services. These proposals place consumers’ interests, competition, security and trust at their centre.
The payment services market has changed significantly in recent years. Electronic payments in the EU have been constantly growing, reaching €240 trillion in value in 2021 (compared with €184.2 trillion in 2017). This trend was accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. New providers, enabled by digital technologies, have entered the market, in particular providing ‘open banking’ services – i.e. securely sharing financial data between banks and financial technology firms (‘fintechs’). More sophisticated types of fraud have also emerged, putting consumers at risk and affecting trust.
In response to these developments, today’s package seeks to ensure the EU’s financial sector is fit for purpose and capable of adapting to the ongoing digital transformation, and the risks and opportunities it presents – in particular for consumers. That is why the Commission has today proposed two sets of measures.
The Commission’s proposes to amend and modernise the current Payment Services Directive (PSD2) which will become PSD3 and establish, in addition, a Payment Services Regulation (PSR). These will ensure consumers can continue to safely and securely make electronic payments and transactions in the EU, domestically or cross-border, in euro and non-euro. Whilst safeguarding their rights, it also aims to provide greater choice of payment service providers on the market.
The Commission is also putting forward a legislative proposal for a framework for financial data access. This framework will establish clear rights and obligations to manage customer data sharing in the financial sector beyond payment accounts. In practice, this will lead to more innovative financial products and services for users and will stimulate competition in the financial sector.
