European Commission to open anti-trust investigation into e-payments market

The European Commission is to investigate the European Payments Council (EPC) to ensure that its systems do not exclude new entrants from the e-payments market.

The EPC is run by some of the European Union's largest banks, and is working on the standards that will be used to govern payments in several forms, including web payments, across a Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).

The EC will investigate whether this set-up has the potential to exclude new payment providers not controlled by a bank and therefore result in higher fees for web merchants and consumers.

Joaquín Almunia, EC vice president in charge of competition policy, explained that, while a standardised payment system is vital, it must be open, fair and beneficial to all.

"Use of the internet is increasing, making the need for secure and efficient online payment solutions in the whole SEPA all the more pressing. I therefore welcome the work of the EPC to develop standards in this area," he said.

"In principle, standards promote interoperability and competition, but we need to ensure that the standardisation process does not unnecessarily restrict opportunities for non-participants."

The EC has also received an official complaint on the matter, but declined to elaborate on its nature or origin. The complaint will form part of the investigation.

V3 contacted the EPC for comment but had received no reply at the time of publication.

The investigation comes as the use of mobile payment systems is expected to grow. Google recently announced the first stage of the availability of its Wallet application.