SEPA is supposed to make banking transactions easier. It’s a great idea, but there’s a catch: it has to be implemented in 34 countries, at thousands of institutions and with millions of customers. Here’s a little guide.
The news magazine “Der Spiegel” had already suspected it: “SEPA transfers in the EU: IBAN, the terrible one”, the magazine mocked back in August last year. In fact, getting used to the 22-digit IBAN monster has overwhelmed so many bank customers that the introduction had to be postponed. But the changeover is coming. We can’t take this procedure off your hands, but we can reduce your effort and improve the results.
With the advance of globalisation, methods of communication and transactions are increasingly being raised to an international level. »Single Euro Payments Area« is the full name of an initiative of the European Union to standardise cross-border payment transactions.