Only a matter of seconds for consumers: in the future, banks will also have to offer instant transfers in euros.
In the future, consumers in the EU will be able to transfer euro amounts within the community of states within seconds without any additional costs. Negotiators from EU countries and the European Parliament agreed on Tuesday evening that banks and other payment service providers that offer standard transfers in euros must also offer instant transfers in euros in the future. If fees are charged for this, they should not be higher than the fees charged for standard transfers.
Instant transfers enable consumers to transfer money within ten seconds – even outside of business hours and to another EU member state, the countries said. This means that private customers and companies don’t have to wait for their money. In addition, secure transfers would be made possible, Parliament said.
The new rules should apply to the 27 EU states as well as Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. They will be implemented after a transition period: faster in the euro countries than in others. Parliament and the states must first give the green light to the provisional agreement.
Source: Stern
