European Payment Networks Serving 130 Million Users Unite To Challenge Visa And Mastercard

Five major European payment platforms serving around 130 million users have formed the European Network for Payments (ENP), creating a common interoperability layer designed to enable cross-border payments and strengthen Europe’s independence from dominant international payment networks.

The Madrid-based venture brings together Bancomat, Bizum, EPI/Wero, SIBS-MB WAY and Vipps MobilePay across 13 European countries, with person-to-person payments set to arrive first.

 

TL;DR

 

• Five European payment platforms have created the European Network for Payments.
• The founding services reach about 130 million users across 13 countries.
• ENP will connect existing services rather than replace their apps or brands.
• Cross-border P2P payments will launch first, followed by e-commerce and in-store payments.
• The initiative supports Europe’s push for greater payments sovereignty.

 

Five European Payment Platforms Create ENP

 

Bancomat, Bizum, EPI Company/Wero, SIBS-MB WAY and Vipps MobilePay have officially established the European Network for Payments, according to the EPI announcement.

The new company will be headquartered in Madrid and operate a common interoperability hub initially outlined in a memorandum of understanding signed by the founding companies in February 2026.

Together, the five payment solutions already reach approximately 130 million users across 13 European countries, representing more than 70% of the combined population of the European Union and Norway.

The companies will be equal shareholders in ENP.

Unlike a new consumer payment app designed to replace the founding platforms, ENP will work behind them. It will connect participating systems through a shared technical and operational layer based on European standards, including instant account-to-account payments.

TechRadar notes that users will therefore be able to continue using familiar national payment services while gaining access to a wider cross-border network.

 

European Payments Will Be Connected In Phases

 

The rollout will begin with cross-border person-to-person payments.

E-commerce payments will follow in a later phase, before the network expands into physical point-of-sale transactions. TechRadar reports that ENP aims to have all three payment categories implemented by the end of 2027.

The founders have already begun preparing the technical implementation of the network, while other established European payment services may eventually be allowed to join if they meet ENP’s technical and operational requirements.

The official Bancomat announcement describes the project as an effort to connect strong domestic services without removing the brands, functionality and trust they have already established in their respective markets.

“The creation of this interoperability entity represents a significant step forward in building a sovereign and integrated European payments landscape,” said Bancomat CEO Fabrizio Burlando.

EPI CEO Martina Weimert said the network would allow Europeans to continue using payment services they already trust as they travel, shop or conduct business across borders.

 

Why Europe Wants Its Own Cross-Border Payment Network

 

The move comes amid a wider European push to reduce reliance on non-European infrastructure for critical digital services.

Reuters reported that European policymakers have increasingly made payments sovereignty a priority, with ENP positioned as a way of connecting domestic payment systems that have historically remained fragmented across national borders.

That fragmentation has been a major obstacle to creating Europe-wide alternatives.

The European Commission’s retail payments guidance says European payment providers and fintech platforms can be highly successful domestically but have struggled to expand across the bloc partly because their services are not interoperable.

The Commission also says a small number of large global companies dominate electronic cross-border payments in Europe, particularly at physical points of sale.

ENP is designed to address part of that problem by giving existing European platforms a common system through which transactions can move across borders.

Visa And Mastercard Remain Dominant In European Card Payments

 

The scale of Europe’s reliance on international payment networks is also reflected in European Central Bank data.

An ECB report on card schemes found that international card schemes handled approximately 61% of euro-area card transactions in 2022, while national schemes represented the remaining 39%.

Thirteen euro-area countries depended entirely on international card schemes for card transactions, according to the ECB.

This gives European policymakers and payment providers an incentive to strengthen domestic and regional alternatives, although ENP is not simply a new card network designed to replace Visa or Mastercard.

Its initial focus is instant account-to-account payments and interoperability between services that already have significant domestic user bases.

 

What Happens Next For The European Network For Payments?

 

ENP now faces the more difficult task of turning technical interoperability into widespread consumer and merchant usage.

Reuters reported that the company has selected a chief executive and plans to recruit staff, while shareholders are expected to cover operating costs during its early years as the network builds scale.

Merchant acceptance, regulation and support from European countries will also influence how significant the network eventually becomes.

For now, its immediate advantage is reach. Instead of attempting to build a new European payments brand from scratch, ENP starts with five established platforms and approximately 130 million existing users.

If those systems can successfully operate across national borders while retaining their familiar consumer experiences, ENP could give Europe something it has historically struggled to establish: a large-scale payments network built by connecting services Europeans already use.