European Payments Alliance: national payment apps that work across borders
The European Payments Alliance (EuroPA) connects national mobile payment services so that their users can pay each other across borders with a phone number. Its members run the account-to-account apps of Spain, Italy, Portugal, the Nordic countries, Poland and Greece. With the European Payments Initiative and its wallet Wero, the alliance is building one interoperability hub.
Founders, members and reach
Bancomat from Italy, Bizum from Spain and SIBS, the Portuguese operator of MB WAY, signed a letter of intent in December 2023, according to Wikipedia. Cross-border transfers between the three services went live on March 31, 2025. Vipps MobilePay and Blik joined later, followed by IRIS from Greece. In a release of November 2025, the alliance named over 100 million users in ten European countries and described its goal as an interoperable and fully sovereign ecosystem.
Each member keeps its own app, brand and domestic rules. The link runs underneath, on account-to-account payments over the SEPA instant rails and their national counterparts.
The hub with EPI and Wero
EuroPA and the European Payments Initiative, the company behind Wero, announced their cooperation in June 2025. In September 2025 they stated the plan to connect their solutions through a central technical hub based on European standards and infrastructure. On February 2, 2026, Bancomat, Bizum, EPI, SIBS and Vipps MobilePay signed a memorandum of understanding: about 130 million users in 13 countries, person-to-person payments across borders first, then e-commerce and payments in stores (EMPSA).
The Börsen-Zeitung (in German) reports that the five founded the joint venture European Network for Payments with equal shares, seated in Madrid, which runs the common interoperability hub.
Why European banks follow it
The ECB found that 13 euro area countries rely entirely on international card schemes for card payments, which in its words raises questions about the EU's strategic autonomy in payments. The national apps of the EuroPA members already cover domestic payments without a card. Linked together, they let their users pay abroad on European rails.
Upcoming payments events
Is Wero part of the European Payments Alliance?
Wero is run by the European Payments Initiative, which is not a EuroPA member. EPI and the EuroPA members signed the memorandum together and plan to connect Wero with the national apps through the shared hub.
Which countries does EuroPA cover?
Spain and Andorra through Bizum, Italy through Bancomat, Portugal through MB WAY, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden through Vipps MobilePay, Poland through Blik and Greece through IRIS. With Wero, the memorandum adds Germany, France, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.
Does EuroPA replace Visa and Mastercard?
Not directly. The members move money between bank accounts and use no card network. Their link covers payments between people first. Shopping online and in stores across borders is planned as the next step.
European Payments Alliance and Finance Loop
Finance Loop brings together the people at German banks and payment providers who decide how Wero and the European account-to-account apps reach their customers. With Venturebloxx, Finance Loop prepares the report The Future of Money in Europe.
Finance Loop is a professional network and has the goal of driving the adoption of emerging technologies in finance, such as AI, digital payments, cloud and blockchain solutions. Finance Loop helps its members build skills and personal networks in these fields: Investment & Digital Assets, Payments & Digital Money, Digital Infrastructure & Sovereignty, and Risk & Compliance.