World funds firm ACI Worldwide has teamed up with Banfico, a fintech specialising in regulatory know-how, international account verification and open banking options.
Via the partnership, ACI will assist UK and European banks and fee service suppliers (PSP) to adjust to mandates to supply Affirmation of Payee (CoP) and Verification of Payee (VOP) providers.
The brand new European Instantaneous Fee Regulation mandates the VOP service throughout all PSPs by October 2025. This service permits PSPs to confirm account names and numbers earlier than transfers, enhancing fee safety all through the Single Euro Funds Space and addressing the escalating menace of fraud, together with Authorised Push Funds (APP) fraud.
Moreover, as a Pay.UK-certified CoP aggregator, Banfico empowers ACI to supply CoP providers to each new and present Quicker Funds clients within the UK. CoP, a verification service for UK-based funds, ensures that customers ship funds to the proper recipient.
This enhanced verification not solely prevents unintended transactions to unintended account holders but additionally provides an additional layer of safety in combating fraud and identification scams.
The alliance
“Account verification providers are a essential part of recent fee programs. VOP is a key requirement as a part of Europe’s Instantaneous Fee Regulation. Equally, within the UK, most main banks and PSPs have applied CoP to boost fee safety and scale back APP fraud,” mentioned Nick Craig, head of Europe, ACI Worldwide.
“Partnering with Banfico allows ACI to assist our clients to stick to new market and regulatory necessities extra swiftly and to make prompt funds safer.”
Kannan Rasappan, CEO of Banfico, additionally added: “We’re enthusiastic about our partnership with ACI Worldwide; it combines the very best of each worlds: ACI’s unrivalled capabilities in funds software program know-how, and Banfico’s experience in account verification providers.
“Our partnership with ACI Worldwide strengthens Banfico’s dedication to the UK and European market and can allow us to drive innovation in regulatory options for banks throughout the area.”