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The country or bank where customers<br />
hold accounts should make no difference<br />
for payments. The EurosystemÕs<br />
vision for the SEPA, hence, is<br />
that all payments effected in the euro<br />
area should be treated like domestic<br />
payments.<br />
One first milestone in approximating<br />
national, i.e. intra-Member<br />
State, and domestic, i.e. inter-Member<br />
State, payments was the implementation<br />
of Regulation (EC) No<br />
2560/2001 of the European Parliament<br />
and of the Council of 19 December<br />
2001 on cross-border payments<br />
in euro, which stipulated that<br />
as of July 1, 2002, customer charges<br />
on cross-border payments 1 in the<br />
euro area must no longer exceed<br />
those on national transactions. Furthermore,<br />
42 European banks as well<br />
as the European credit sector associations<br />
demonstrated their support of<br />
implementing a SEPA by 2010, issuing<br />
aWhitePaperinMay2002andestablishing<br />
the European Payments Council<br />
(EPC) 2 in June 2002. The Eurosystem<br />
recommends that relevant instruments<br />
be made available as an option<br />
— in addition to the existing structures<br />
in the Member States — for national<br />
payments to individuals and enterprisesasearlyas2008.Afullmigration<br />
for banks and their customers<br />
to pan-European solutions is targeted<br />
to be achieved by end-2010.<br />
The OeNB welcomes the ECBÕs<br />
initiative in implementing a SEPA<br />
and supports the Austrian banking in-<br />
Integration of Payment Services in Europe and Consolidation<br />
of Cash Distribution Structures in Austria<br />
dustry in taking the necessary preparatory<br />
measures. The OeNB was able<br />
to provide Austrian banks with a neutral<br />
gateway to the EBA 3 -operated<br />
STEP2 system at the earliest possible<br />
date. EBAÕs pan-European automated<br />
clearing house (PEACH), as yet the<br />
only clearing house to offer EU-wide<br />
services, processes euro payments<br />
covered by Regulation (EC) No<br />
2560/2001. By providing a STEP2 access<br />
point, the OeNB underlines its<br />
operational commitment to guaranteeing<br />
safe payment processing and<br />
increasing market efficiency.<br />
The OeNB strives to continually<br />
improve the legal framework as well<br />
as the standardization and automation<br />
of its range of payment services with<br />
a view to optimizing market structures.<br />
This way, the OeNB contributes<br />
to positioning Austria as a competitive<br />
financial marketplace and<br />
backs Austrian banks in bringing<br />
about a SEPA.<br />
1 Up to EUR 12,500 provided the BIC and the IBAN are indicated.<br />
2 Body formed in June 2002 by European banks and banking associations to provide strategic orientation and<br />
guidance in implementing a Single Euro Payments Area.<br />
3 EBA: Euro Banking Association. In 1985, 18 commercial banks and the European Investment Bank, with the<br />
support of the European Commission, founded EBA, which is based in Paris and, as at end-<strong>2004</strong>, comprised<br />
some 200 institutional members. In end-1998, EBA Clearing was set up to operate the large-value payment<br />
system EURO1, which went live at the beginning of 1999. Apart from EURO1, EBA developed two<br />
payment solutions for low- and medium-value payments, STEP1 and STEP2, under the S.T.E.P.S. (Straight<br />
Through Euro Payment System) program.<br />
OeNB welcomes ECB<br />
initiative for SEPA<br />
implementation and<br />
supports banksÕ<br />
preparatory work<br />
<strong>Annual</strong> <strong>Report</strong> <strong>2004</strong> ×<br />
49
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