The European Payments Council (EPC) is pleased to announce the start of the delivery project for the EPC Directory Service (EDS), after selecting Swift as supplier for the development and operations of the EDS and after signing an agreement at the end of 2024. Swift has been selected as EDS provider after a Request for Proposal (RFP) process running in the second and third quarters of 2024 and the subsequent approval by the EPC Board in September 2024.

Supporting the Verification of Payee Scheme

The EDS is a key component for payments service providers (PSPs) to operate the EPC Verification Of Payee (VOP) scheme, a scheme that allows the PSPs’ compliance with the Instant Payment Regulation (IPR) requirement to offer an IBAN-name check service, before payers may authorise a payment by credit transfer or instant credit transfer.

The EPC VOP scheme relies on exchanging VOP messages between payer and payee PSPs in accordance with the rules set out in the VOP rulebook and implemented on the basis of application programming interfaces (APIs) designed by the EPC.

In the architecture of the VOP scheme, the EDS enables reachability and interoperability between VOP scheme participants. It stores and makes available to authorised business users in a secure manner data for identification of participant PSPs, their adherence to the EPC VOP scheme and options, and API endpoints (or Uniform Resource Identifier or URIs). The EDS will be accessible to scheme participants adhering to the VOP scheme and to the Routing and Verification Mechanisms (RVMs) operating on their behalf.

The EDS won’t store any personal data or IBAN, as it will only be used for routing purposes between business entities (PSPs and RVMs). Furthermore, the EDS will be used not only to support VOP scheme but also for all other EPC API-based schemes, such as the SEPA Request-to-Pay (SRTP) and the SEPA Payment Account Access (SPAA) schemes.

Giorgio Andreoli, Director General of the EPC, said: “We are pleased to select Swift for the development and operation of the EDS platform, after a very competitive RFP process to which several relevant European and global suppliers of IT services participated. This agreement marks a significant milestone in advancing the VOP scheme, ensuring greater security and interoperability in payments across Europe.”

Next Steps

The EDS platform is set to go live by 5 October 2025, along with the entering into force of the EPC VOP Rulebook. The next phase is the publication of technical guidelines for PSPs and RVMs in February.

Thomas Peeters, Head of Western Europe at Swift, said: “Swift has a long-standing reputation as a leading reference data provider and we’re pleased to be using this experience in collaboration with the EPC. This directory service will enable the efficient operating of EPC schemes, including Verification of Payee, and make it easier for PSPs to comply with the Instant Payments Regulation ahead of the deadline later this year.”