The Instant Payments Regulation (IPR) officially came into force in April 2024. From that date, every bank and payment service provider in the EU that holds euro accounts has been put on a countdown. The message from Brussels is simple: instant payments can no longer be optional.
The deadlines are tight. By the 9th of October 2025, every provider must be able to receive instant euro payments around the clock. Just a few months later, by January 2026, they must also be able to send them. For countries in the EU that don’t use the euro, there’s a bit more breathing space, but the obligation is still there.
What makes this regulation different from earlier initiatives is that it doesn’t just encourage adoption—it forces it. For years, some banks treated instant payments as a premium service, charging extra fees or only offering it in limited markets. That model is over. The regulation says instant payments must be priced the same as a normal SEPA transfer. In practice, this means customers will no longer pay more just to move their money faster.
The directive also recognizes that speed brings new risks. Fraudsters thrive when money moves instantly and irreversibly. That is why the regulation includes a new safeguard: Verification of Payee (VoP). Before a transfer is executed, banks must check whether the account name matches the IBAN. If there’s a mismatch, the sender has to be warned. It sounds simple, but it adds a vital layer of protection against scams and data errors.
For the market, the pressure is real. Banks must modernize their systems to handle transactions in seconds, including fraud checks and sanctions screening, without slowing down the payment. Many will need to overhaul legacy infrastructure, a costly and complex task. At the same time, corporates will have to prepare for a world where cash positions change instantly and mistakes cannot be undone. That means better master data, tighter payment controls, and updated ERP processes.
In short, the regulation is forcing the entire payments ecosystem to raise its game. It closes the gap between what technology makes possible and what the market actually delivers. And while it puts short-term pressure on banks and businesses to adapt, it ultimately lays the foundation for a faster, safer, and more competitive European payments landscape.
The directive puts real pressure on banks and payment service providers. For those still relying on legacy infrastructure, this is a major undertaking. Processing payments in seconds requires modern APIs, strong fraud engines, and sanctions screening that can work in real time without slowing everything down.
It’s not just about compliance, either. The removal of premium pricing means instant payments won’t generate extra revenue. Banks will need to absorb the cost of system upgrades while competing on service quality instead. That raises the stakes: customer trust, reliability, and fraud prevention will become the new battlegrounds.
The market shift
What the directive really does is force the entire market to modernize. No longer can banks delay adoption, no longer can corporates rely on outdated processes. Everyone in the payments chain is being pushed to raise their game.
This creates both short-term pain and long-term opportunity. In the short term, banks and corporates face the cost of system upgrades, integration work, and process redesign. In the long term, they gain a payments environment that is faster, safer, and more predictable.
And while the regulation is European, the implications are global. Multinationals that run treasury hubs in Europe will feel the impact worldwide, as instant payments become the benchmark against which other regions are measured.
At its heart, the Instant Payments Directive is about trust. Regulators know that without trust, adoption will stall. Customers won’t embrace instant payments if they fear losing money to fraud or errors. By embedding Verification of Payee and requiring real-time fraud checks, the EU is building safeguards into the very core of the system.
For corporates, the opportunity is clear. Those who act early—by engaging with banks, updating systems, and cleaning master data—will position themselves ahead of the curve. They’ll be able to move money instantly and securely, strengthening both efficiency and reputation. Those who wait risk being caught out by errors, fraud, or regulatory pressure.
At Cobase, we view VoP not as a burden, but as a strategic enabler of trust and efficiency. Our platform integrates VoP seamlessly across the payment lifecycle, helping corporates stay compliant, reduce errors, and protect against fraud:
Master data checks – Validate supplier and employee details directly from your ERP through Cobase, catching errors before payments are even created.
Bulk payments – Run VoP checks across payroll or supplier batches, validating thousands of lines before execution.
Single payments – Apply real-time VoP to SEPA transactions executed within the Cobase platform.
Address book validation – Keep your beneficiary records clean by flagging outdated or incorrect details.
By embedding these safeguards into your operations, Cobase ensures your organization can embrace instant payments with confidence, compliance, and control without shortcuts or regulatory risk.
1. What is the Instant Payments Directive?
The Instant Payments Directive (also called the Instant Payments Regulation) is new EU legislation that makes instant payments mandatory across the euro area. By late 2025, all banks and payment service providers holding euro accounts must be able to send and receive instant transfers 24/7.
2. Why were instant payments not widely available before?
Although SEPA Instant Credit Transfers (SCT Inst) were introduced in 2017, participation was optional. Some banks adopted the scheme quickly, but many did not. As a result, instant payments were common in some countries but almost unavailable in others.
3. How does Verification of Payee (VoP) work?
Verification of Payee checks whether the name of the beneficiary matches the IBAN before a transfer is processed. If there’s a mismatch, the sender is warned. This helps reduce fraud and prevents costly errors before the payment leaves the account.
4. What risks do corporates face with instant payments?
Instant transfers are irreversible. Errors in supplier details, outdated employee data, or fraud attempts can cause money to be lost in seconds. Without accurate master data and fraud-prevention controls, corporates are more exposed to risk than with traditional, slower payments.
5. How should businesses prepare for instant payments?
Corporates need to ensure their payment processes, ERP data, and fraud controls are ready for a real-time environment. This means cleaning up master data, implementing strong verification measures, and adopting technology that supports instant and secure payment flows.