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V PAY

V PAY is a chip-only, PIN based, European debit product that meets the needs of European banks, using the EMV chip technology in which they have already invested.

V PAY helps our members to:

• Develop their debit card programmes. Reducing costs, increasing security, and enabling everyday spending encourage consumers to turn away from less efficient, more expensive ways to pay such as cash and cheques.
• Migrate to a more consistent European payments market, in line with the European Commission and European Central Bank's vision of creating a Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA).
• Maintain ownership and control over local and regional debit card payments through local and regional decision-making bodies.

As well as helping banks implement the SEPA Cards Framework, V PAY brings many additional benefits:

• Easy to issue – it’s simple and inexpensive to add V PAY to existing debit programmes. It can co-exist with any domestic-branded national debit card scheme; is compatible with all European bank account numbering structures; and can support other debit card applications such as electronic purse products and loyalty schemes.
• Easy to acquire – having completed a simple series of routing tests, acquirers can easily introduce V PAY. It can be automatically accepted at any EMV chip and PIN terminal; retailers and businesses do not have to support any fallback procedures; everyone is protected by the security of a chip-only, PIN based product.
• Widely accepted – at 7 million EMV chip and PIN terminals and 350,000 ATMs across Europe. When a domestic-branded national debit scheme is co-badged with V PAY, it will continue to be accepted through the existing domestic merchant network.
• Minimum fraud – because it is chip-only, V PAY cuts fraud and exception items to an absolute minimum. This can increase cardholder confidence, make V PAY more attractive to retailers, protect banks from related losses, and shield them from reputation risks.
• Maximum usage – V PAY is designed to increase debit acceptance and increase everyday usage (particularly for lower value payments) while minimising per-transaction costs. A consistent chip and PIN acceptance experience means cardholders will be more confident using their debit cards when they travel.
• Total control – banks choose the level of risk control with offline or online authorisation, as well as how each transaction is processed. Local and regional governance means they also retain control of product management and evolution.
• Leverages EMV chip investment – V PAY uses the EMV technology in which banks and merchants have already invested.

See more at vpay.com.