Computop calls on retailers to join EPI pilot trials

The wero digital wallet will be rolled out in phases, initially to support account-to-account based instant P2P and consumer-to-business payments, followed by online and mobile shopping payments and then point-of-sale payments.

Member banks backing the scheme include ABN Amro, Belfius, BFCM, BNP Paribas, BPCE, Crédit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, DSGV, DZ Bank ING, KBC, La Banque Postale, Rabobank, Société Générale, with added support from Nexi and Worldline.

The EPI In December completed it first account-to-account instant payment transaction in a proof-of-concept between customers from Sparkasse Elbe-Elster in Germany and Banque Populaire and Caisse d’Epargne (Groupe BPCE) in France.

While payments between individuals are slated to be available in 2024, online retailers will be brought onboard by mid-2025.

Computop is calling on merchants to register for the pilot phase in Q4 2024, integrating the payment method within its Paygate payment platform. All APIs, as well as the preconfigured Hosted Payment Page, will enable payments with wero without the need for major development says the vendor.

Wero transactions will usually be carried out by the customer in the bank’s own app or in the new wero wallet. Merchant apps will also be enabled to use wero payments in the future, while the payment process in desktop e-commerce will be triggered by QR code.

Computop says merchants will benefit from the expansion of wero after the online launch to include use in bricks-and-mortar retail and numerous other functions. These include reservations and refunds, so that a scope of services similar to that of the debit card can be achieved, with ‘payments without a terminal (scan and go)’ also added. Over time, additional value-added services like integration of merchant loyalty programmes and BNPL will be integrated.

Stephan Kück, managing director of Computop, emphasises: "As EPI will be structured as a four-parties scheme that is similar to credit card payments, merchants benefit in particular from the multi-acquirer concept of our payment platform. Another strong advantage is the unique merchant integration for multi-country merchants."

Martina Weimert, CEO of EPI says the collaboration with Computop marks "the beginning of the e-commerce journey" with wero.

"We’re pleased of this first agreement that will allow merchants to project themselves with a new payment scheme that fits their needs and the customer ones of easiness, security, service-offering and cost-effectiveness for both parties," she says. "We’re happy that Computop joins us empowering our European solution in our journey of setting up a real alternative to international solutions. Many more steps to follow…!”