EPS-4.1. Facts and figures, first half of 2024.Photo: National Bank of Ukraine.
On 1 December 2024, an updated version of the National Bank of Ukraine’s electronic payment system (EPS-4.1), which includes the functionality of instant credit transfers, was launched in Ukraine. This step was part of the amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Payment Services”, which came into force on 8 November 2024. EPS instant transfers significantly improve Ukraine’s payment infrastructure, increasing the availability and efficiency of financial services. This is reported by Time Ukraine Israel portal with reference to the National Bank of Ukraine.
Advantages and features of CEP-4.1
The launch of the new version of EPS.-4.1 has a number of advantages, including:
- Innovation – integration of instant transfers functionality, which is the next stage in the development of the country’s payment system.
- Transparency – clear conditions for all participants in the system that guarantee transparent and accessible financial transactions.
- Availability – payment transactions via EPS are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The new version of EPS.-4.1 also allows for instant transfers, which are processed continuously throughout the entire time. All EPS participants have now switched to the updated version, and the system continues to operate without interruption. Several large banks have already joined the EPS instant transfers, including the National Bank of Ukraine, JSC Oschadbank, JSC CREDIT AGRICOLE BANK, JSC SKY BANK and others. Gradually, all system participants will connect to the new functionality to provide high-quality payment services to their customers.
What is an instant EPS transfer?
Instant EPS transfer is a payment transaction that ensures instant crediting of funds to the recipient’s account, with the transaction taking place in a matter of seconds (no more than 10 seconds). Such a transaction can be initiated by both individuals and legal entities. The maximum amount of one transfer is UAH 100 thousand, which is sufficient for many daily transactions.
Advantages of EPS instant transfers
- For individuals, it means instant real-time crediting of funds, which is especially useful when paying for goods and services. In addition, the convenience of initiating payments through mobile applications and using QR codes or Deeplink to transfer details makes the process even easier.
- For businesses, it is an opportunity to reduce operating costs and effectively manage liquidity, while improving customer service through round-the-clock payment availability.
- For Ukraine’s economy, it will accelerate the digitalisation of financial services, stimulate competition among payment systems and reduce transaction costs, as well as enable integration with international instant transfer systems, including the EU.
Reference.
The Electronic Payment System (EPS) is systemically important for Ukraine’s economy and provides over 99% of interbank payments in the national currency. The system is operated by the National Bank of Ukraine. In the first nine months of 2024, about 347 million payments were made through the EPS, up 13.4% year-on-year.
This innovation is an important step towards the modernisation of the payment infrastructure and will contribute to the further development of financial technologies in Ukraine.
