National rule implementing the Payment Services Directive adopted into domestic law by the Italian Cabinet. Entry into force is expected after publication of the decree on the Gazzetta Ufficiale della Repubblica Italiana, the official journal of record of the Italian government.
The Italian Cabinet approved on Friday 22nd January 2010 the decree which transposes the Payment Services Directive (PSD, 2007/64/CE) providing the legal foundation for the creation of an EU-wide single market for payments.
The national rule contains some relevant news for the Italian payment services scenario. Among the most relevant, stronger protections for banks clients in case of unauthorized or incorrect payments operations, credit transfers execution times down to maximum one working day and the introduction of the new the so-called Payment Institutions, non-banking actors (like retail and telecom operators) that, following local authorization (in Italy, by Banca dItalia), will be allowed to provide and execute payment services throughout the EU/EEA. Entry into force is expected on the first available Monday 15 days after publication of the decree on the Gazzetta Ufficiale della Repubblica Italiana, the official journal of record of the Italian government.
We welcome the news of the definitive approval by the Italian Cabinet last Friday of the decree that transposes the PSD in Italy, says Carlo Tresoldi, chairman of SIA-SSB.. Our country finally joins the other 17 countries of the EU that have already implemented the PSD into their domestic laws. It represents a fundamental step forward for banks, corporates and consumers in the payment systems harmonization process and towards the creation of the Single European Payments Area. This law, which strengthens competition, will allow granting all European consumers transparency and reliability in using a new and wider choice of electronic payment services, eliminating the legislative differences amongst countries. As technology partner of the Italian and international banking system, the SIA-SSB Group renews its commitment to supporting effectively the new business models that are being defined within the European financial sector, thanks to the transposition of the PSD which foresees the introduction of new payment services providers the so-called Payments Institutions – through the realization of advanced technology infrastructures that facilitate compliance to the new standards set for electronic payments.
D.C.