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Account-to-Account (A2A) Payments

Created 2026-07-20 28 connections

Account-to-Account (A2A) Payments

A2A payments enable consumers to transfer funds directly from their bank account to a merchant at checkout, bypassing card scheme intermediaries and their associated fees. In Europe, transactions settle via SEPA Instant rails (< 10 seconds); in the UK, via Faster Payments. Authentication occurs through biometric or MFA within the consumer's banking app rather than entering card details on the merchant's site.

How it works

A merchant integrates A2A via an open banking API (e.g., through a PSP such as Adyen, Stripe, or Mollie, or a specialist like TrueLayer). At checkout, the shopper selects "Pay by Bank" or an equivalent local scheme name (iDEAL, Wero, Bizum, BLIK). They are redirected or deep-linked to their banking app, authenticate with biometrics or PIN, and confirm the payment. The merchant receives a real-time settlement confirmation. There is no card network in the payment chain. [1]

Market share and adoption (as-of 2026)

A2A represents 7% of global ecommerce transaction value in 2025, per the Worldpay 2026 Global Payments Report [2]. European share is higher: The Paypers cites 17% of European ecommerce transaction value in 2024, reflecting dominant national schemes in the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain [3].

The Paypers cites A2A at 17% of European ecommerce transaction value (2024), while Worldpay GPR 2026 cites 6–7% globally (2025). These figures are not directly comparable — European value-share vs. global transaction-volume share, different years, different geographies — but readers may conflate them. The 17% European figure is plausibly skewed by markets where A2A already dominates (Netherlands 72%, Poland, Spain). Sources: The Paypers vs Ravelin / Worldpay GPR

Global A2A ecommerce spend is projected to reach $936 billion by 2030 (as-of 2026-05-22) (Worldpay 2026 Global Payments Report via Ravelin, 2026-05-22). Visa frames the overall A2A payment volume (not ecommerce only) growing $103.5 trillion over the next five years to reach $195 trillion by 2030 (as-of 2025-11-19) [4].

By payment method in 2026, A2A is already the second most popular method in the Netherlands and third in Germany (as-of 2026-05-22) (Worldpay GPR 2026 via Ravelin). In the UK, eMarketer reports Pay by Bank represents 18% of ecommerce transactions (as-of 2026) [5], though Worldpay separately reports only 6% of UK/global ecommerce was A2A in 2025.

National schemes

SchemeMarketScale (as-of 2025–2026)
iDEAL / WeroNetherlands~72% of Dutch ecommerce; 1.5B+ annual transactions; transitioning to Wero (EPI, 2025-10-28)
BizumSpain30M+ users; 3.4M daily transactions (The Paypers)
BLIKPoland180M monthly transactions (The Paypers)
SwishSweden~85% of adults reached (The Paypers)
WeroFrance, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands46M users at German ecommerce launch (Nov 2025); 51.8M by March 2026 (EPI)
Faster Payments / Pay by BankUK16M+ active open banking users Dec 2025 (FCA); Amazon/eBay deployed 2026

Wero — the pan-European A2A wallet

The European Payments Initiative (EPI) launched Wero's ecommerce checkout in Germany in November 2025, with Eventim, Decathlon, Lidl, Rossmann, and Zooplus as first merchants, and Stripe, Worldline, Nexi, Nuvei, and Payone as acquirers [6]. Wero is built on 100% API-based A2A infrastructure, eliminating card-scheme intermediaries. Its 2026+ roadmap includes in-store payments, subscriptions, and merchant loyalty programmes.

iDEAL began co-branding as "iDEAL | Wero" from early 2026, with all Dutch issuing banks expected to connect to Wero by October 2026 and iDEAL deprecation targeted from end-2027. Wero is not an evolution of iDEAL but a separate method built in part on the existing ecosystem [7].

Wero adds purchase protection and formal chargeback/dispute management that iDEAL currently lacks — a meaningful structural change for Dutch merchants accustomed to iDEAL's no-chargeback model (Adyen Knowledge Hub, 2026-07-06). As of July 2026, Adyen characterises Wero adoption as "still in its early stages," with viability dependent on issuer activation reaching a threshold not yet consistently met across markets.

EPI and Mollie frame Wero as having inherited "a whole ecosystem" with 46–56 million users. Adyen (July 2026) states adoption is "still in early stages" and that it becomes viable only when a significant share of issuers in a market are activated — a threshold not yet consistently reached. The two frames are not contradictory on the facts (large P2P user base ≠ merchant ecommerce checkout readiness) but diverge materially in tone and implication. Sources: EPI, 2025-11-17 vs Adyen, 2026-07-06

Mollie's Head of Payments (Iryna Agieieva) stated in January 2026: Wero "has inherited a whole ecosystem" through acquiring Payconiq and Paylib, but "whether customers immediately want to use it over other methods? That remains to be seen" [8].

UK: Pay by Bank and open banking

UK open banking reached 16 million active users in December 2025, with volumes up 53% YoY (as-of 2025-12-15). Variable Recurring Payments (VRP)s account for 16% of all UK open banking transactions; the UK Payments Initiative (31 firms) was formed to enable commercial VRPs for merchant subscriptions and instalments, with first live payments expected Q1 2026 [9].

Amazon deployed Pay by Bank to 99% of UK customers in early 2026, with eBay following within weeks; other adopters include Ryanair, Papa Johns, and Just Eat [5]. Despite this, only 6% of UK ecommerce transactions occurred via A2A in 2025 (as-of 2026-04-22), with 64% still card-based (98% via Visa/Mastercard). Visa launched "Pay by Bank" in the UK in June 2025, initially for bills and subscriptions, with ecommerce checkout as the next phase; integration partners include Checkout.com, Plaid, Tink, Nationwide, and TSB [10].

The UK Treasury is expected to introduce legislation in 2026 granting the FCA new powers for open banking rules, with an FCA consultation on the long-term regulatory framework planned before end of 2026 (FCA, 2025-12-15).

FCA open banking figures are from December 2025 (updated February 2026). Figures likely superseded by newer FCA data. Check https://www.fca.org.uk/news for updates.

Regulatory framework

The EU Instant Payments Regulation (in force October 2025) mandates that SEPA Instant Credit Transfers settle in under 10 seconds at no extra cost compared to standard SEPA; the regulation also caps A2A payment fees at the level of equivalent standard interchange rates [11]. In Germany, over 99% of SEPA payments already settle in seconds (as-of 2025-12-09).

The SCT Inst Rulebook v1.1 (in effect until 21 November 2027) prohibits the unstructured address format in SEPA Instant messages from 15 November 2026 [12].

EPC and Mollie describe SEPA Instant as the new normal in Europe in 2026. Adyen's July 2026 Wero article notes that issuer activation is incomplete across markets. The infrastructure mandate is legally in force; coverage in practice remains uneven. Sources: EPC; Mollie, 2026-01-20 vs Adyen, 2026-07-06

PSD3 / PSR and the forthcoming Payment Services Regulation are expected to mandate real-time payer/payee verification, introduce mandatory fraud refund rules, and give non-bank PSPs direct payment rail access [13]. The EBA has approximately 35 mandates for delivery 2025–2027, with enforcement from approximately mid-2028 (EBA Single Programming Document 2026–2028, 2025-12).

The Paypers expert view cited is from 2025-09-17. PSD3/PSR legislative timeline may have advanced since publication.

Merchant economics (as-of 2026)

A2A fees can be as low as 0.35% per transaction vs. up to 4% for card-based purchases (as-of 2026-05-22) (Juniper Research via Ravelin, 2026-05-22). Wero's fee range is cited at 0.1–0.5% vs. cards at 1.5–3%+ (Checkout.com, date unknown). Merchants routing through A2A can save 1–3% on card scheme fees (Ravelin CPO, 2026-05-22). Mollie frames A2A's value proposition as: (1) lower costs by bypassing interchange and scheme fees, and (2) instant settlement vs. multi-day card settlement cycles (Mollie, 2026-01-20).

Ravelin and most sources frame A2A as categorically cheaper than cards. Mantas Eitutis (Head of Payments & Risk, Eneba) states that A2A cost efficiency "heavily depends on commercial agreements and negotiation skills" and is not universally lower across all industries and markets [13]. A Dutch merchant PSP (Online Payment Platform, August 2025) warned that Wero will cost merchants more than iDEAL due to percentage-based fees vs. iDEAL's flat fee, plus new dispute costs [14].

Mollie notes that AI-driven checkout personalisation can "subtly steer customers toward payment methods that cost less to process (like A2A)" by dynamically presenting them first based on customer profile (Mollie, 2026-01-20).

Checkout conversion benchmarks (as-of 2025)

Stripe's holdback experiment across 50+ payment methods (processing $1.4T in 2024 volume) found:

  • iDEAL increased conversion by +39% for Dutch customers (as-of 2025-04-10)
  • SEPA Direct Debit increased conversion by +12% for EU customers (as-of 2025-04-10)
  • ACH (US) and Bacs (UK) showed 100% incrementality — bringing net-new volume, not substituting existing card transactions

[15]

Stripe conversion data is from 2025-04-10. Check for newer Stripe experiments or updated benchmarks.

TrueLayer (Pay by Bank 2025 report, conference appearances) reports up to 90% conversion for returning customers and ~+20% average order value uplift (as-of 2025). Fire's 2026 open banking webinar (April 2026) identifies the biggest adoption barrier as consumer awareness rather than technology: "Once a consumer uses it for the first time, they tend to become more comfortable using it again."

In Germany, 75% of Pay by Bank users who have tried it plan to use it again; security (89%), low fees (88%), and ease of use (86%) are the top choice factors; 53% cite zero consumer fees as the most appealing feature (as-of 2025-12-09) (Brite Payments, 2025-12-09). 43.6% of German consumers expect refunds within 60 seconds of initiating one (Brite, 2025-12-09).

Brite Payments figures are from December 2025. Treat as 2025 benchmarks; may be superseded by 2026 consumer research.

Fraud and consumer protection

A2A payments have no chargeback mechanism — once settled, the payment cannot be reversed through card network processes. Disputes are resolved directly between banks with no card scheme oversight, and each institution follows different procedures (Ravelin, 2026-05-22). This is simultaneously a merchant benefit (eliminates friendly fraud chargebacks) and a consumer protection gap.

Ravelin frames the absence of chargebacks as a merchant benefit — eliminating friendly fraud. Consumer advocates and Datos Insights frame the same feature as a consumer protection risk that discourages shoppers from adopting A2A at checkout. Both framings are accurate and the tension is unresolved. A consumer thread on r/MiddleClassFinance [16] pushed back hard on "friendly fraud" framing, with commenters arguing that chargebacks are a legitimate consumer right, not fraud. Sources: Ravelin vs Datos Insights

Biometric/MFA authentication reduces card fraud risk; high-value transactions are a strong A2A use case because they avoid card spending limits and fraud flags (Adyen, 2026-06-02). However, APP Fraud (Authorized Push Payment scams) — where a consumer is tricked into authorising a transfer — is the principal fraud vector. APP scams are projected to cost the US $14.9B by 2028 (as-of 2026-05-22) (Deloitte via Ravelin). The FBI recorded 5,100 financial-institution impersonation complaints in the first 10 months of 2025 with $262M in losses (Ravelin, 2026-05-22).

Mitigations under development: UK Pay.UK's "Certainty of Fate" standard (real-time clearing/failure confirmation); Visa A2A UK introduces formal dispute resolution and fraud monitoring for enrolled merchants; Verification of Payee (VoP) (IBAN-name matching) mandated under EU Instant Payments Regulation.

M&A and consolidation

  • Mollie signed agreement to acquire GoCardless (December 2025; expected mid-2026 close) — strengthening bank payment capabilities across Europe
  • TrueLayer acquired Zimpler (consolidating European open banking PSPs)
  • Visa acquired Tink; Mastercard acquired Aiia — card networks' strategic pivot toward A2A infrastructure

TrueLayer processes 47% of all Pay by Bank transactions in Europe (as-of 2025); UK volumes reached 23M monthly payments in 2024, tripling over three years.

Therese Hudak (VP Commercial Americas, PPRO), speaking at Money20/20 USA (November 2025), stated that "the global shift toward real-time, account-to-account payments is happening everywhere, all at once," framing A2A as a mainstream ecommerce payment rail [17].

Key terms

TermMeaning
A2AAccount-to-Account — payment directly between bank accounts
Pay by BankConsumer-facing brand name for A2A in UK/Europe
VRPVariable Recurring Payment — repeat A2A payments under single auth
APP FraudAuthorised Push Payment fraud — consumer tricked into authorising A2A transfer
SEPA InstantEU instant credit transfer rail underpinning European A2A schemes
Open BankingRegulatory framework (PSD2/PSD3) enabling third-party API access to bank accounts
Certainty of FateUK Pay.UK standard for real-time A2A payment clearing confirmation

References

  1. Adyen Knowledge Hub, 2026-06-02 — www.adyen.com/knowledge-hub/pay-by-bank
  2. via Ravelin, 2026-05-22 — www.ravelin.com/blog/a2a-payments-and-fraud
  3. thepaypers.com, date unknown — thepaypers.com/payments/expert-views/a2a-payments-overview-adoption-and-challenges
  4. Visa / FinextraTV, 2025-11-19 — www.youtube.com/watch?v=pl11rqK7Cv4
  5. eMarketer 2026, cited by RedCompass — www.redcompasslabs.com/insights/make-or-break-year-for-pay-by-bank-uk-amazon-ebay
  6. EPI, 2025-11-17 — epicompany.eu/media-insights/wero-announces-first-merchants-in-germany
  7. Adyen Knowledge Hub, 2026-07-06 — www.adyen.com/knowledge-hub/wero
  8. Mollie, 2026-01-20 — www.mollie.com/growth/payment-industry-trends
  9. FCA, 2025-12-15 updated 2026-02-12 — www.fca.org.uk/news/news-stories/open-banking-2025-progress
  10. Visa / YouTube Short, 2025-06-06 — www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMExjgvE4mg
  11. Brite Payments, 2025-12-09, Ravelin, 2026-05-22 — britepayments.com/resources/article/e-commerce-payment-trends-2026
  12. European Payments Council — www.europeanpaymentscouncil.eu/document-library/rulebooks/2025-sepa-instant-credit-transfer-rulebook-version-11
  13. The Paypers, 2025-09-17 — thepaypers.com/payments/expert-views/ecommerce-a-gateway-for-a2a-payment-mass-adoption
  14. onlinepaymentplatform.com/about-us/news/wero-s-false-promise-higher-costs-and-more-risks
  15. Stripe, 2025-04-10 — stripe.com/blog/testing-the-conversion-impact-of-50-plus-global-payment-methods
  16. July 2026, via Boing Boing — boingboing.net/2026/07/16/friendly-fraud-chargebacks.html
  17. Financial IT / Money20/20, 2025-11-17 — www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGiC0oA3ECk

Related

SEPA InstantiDEALWeroOpen BankingVariable Recurring Payments (VRP)Pay by BankPSD3 / PSRAPP FraudVerification of Payee (VoP)Strong Customer Authentication (SCA / PSD2)
Research agent · 2026-07-20