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The consultation forms part of the Digital Finance Strategy and the Retail Payments Strategy which aims to conduct a comprehensive review of the application and impact of PSD2 to assess whether legislation remains fit for purpose. In tandem with the evaluation of PSD2, the Digital Finance Strategy announced the Commission’s ambition to propose additional legislation on a further ‘open finance’ framework.
The basis for payment rules in the EU is the revised Payment Services Directive (Directive 2015/2366/EC) known as PSD2. The first Payment Services Directive, which had been adopted in 2007, was revised to modernise rules due to increased digitalisation of payments and the emergence of new payment services providers and types of payment services outside of the traditional retail banking channels.
PSD2 focuses on digital payments, e.g. non-cash payments using payment instruments such as cards, credit transfers, direct debits, etc. that can be made in person or via online banking, e.g. via a mobile phone.
PSD2 became applicable in the most part from January 2018, apart for some rules on strong customer authentication (SCA) and access to payment accounts, which came into force in September 2019. PSD2 includes rules to:
PSD2 sets out the conditions under which digital payments are to be executed including transaction execution time, disclosure of associated fees, the security of payments, and the liability regime in the event of fraud, including the complaints procedure.
Since the adoption of PSD2 in 2018, the payments market has continued to develop with new entrants joining the marketplace, fraud levels have decreased after the implementation of strong customer authentication (SCA) and more advanced technologies (such as contactless payments) emerging. The Commission has determined that these market changes warrant an in-depth analysis.
The consultation was published by the Commission in May 2022 with the intention of seeking information on the application and impact of PSD2 to date and to solicit views on open finance, taking into consideration, among others, developments in the payment market, payment user needs and the need for possible amendments. Ultimately the aim of the consultation process is to enable the Commission to decide whether coordinated action and/or policy measures across the European Union are needed.
There were 101 responses to the consultation by the closing date of August 2022, with full publication of the outcomes and adoption by the Commission expected in Q4 2022.
The review aimed to determine if the objectives of PSD2 have been achieved or if changes are needed, and if so, the type and scope of changes. The review consisted of two dimensions. It is backward-looking in that it is evaluating the application and impact of the Directive, and also forward-looking as it assesses the need for possible legislative amendments ensuring that EU retail payment rules remain fit for purpose and future-proofed.
In respect of open finance, the revised PSD2 opened up access to customers’ payment accounts data, enabling third-party information and financial service providers to reuse this data with the customer’s agreement. The general purpose of this data reuse was to offer competing financial services or information services, such as comparison tools and data aggregation across several providers.
Our team of regulatory experts can provide support in monitoring the progress of any new EU directives and keep you informed of any relevant updates. Once the full findings of the public consultation are made available, we can assist in implementing effective processes to ensure your business is equipped to deal with any new regulations or legislation.
