What EBA CLEARING does

EBA CLEARING is a pan-European payment infrastructure provider founded in 1998 and headquartered in Paris, privately owned by 48 major European banks operating under a country-neutral governance model. The company operates a portfolio of SIPS-designated and adjacent payment systems: EURO1 (large-value single payments with multilateral net settlement via the Single Obligation Structure), STEP2 (pan-European SEPA bulk payments covering Credit Transfer, Direct Debit Core, Direct Debit B2B, and Card Clearing), and RT1 (the first pan-European real-time instant payment system, launched 2017). Adjacent services include R2P (Request to Pay messaging, launched 2020), FPAD (Fraud Pattern and Anomaly Detection, launched March 2024), VOP (Verification of Payee), and SEDA (mandate management for SEPA Direct Debits). The company processes over 23 billion payments annually, reaching more than 4,800 payment service providers across all SEPA countries, with peak STEP2 SCT volume of 28.9 million transactions per day (December 2024) and RT1 peak of 6.5 million transactions per day (February 2026).

The platform is built on ISO 20022 XML messaging standards, continuous gross settlement mechanisms, and settlement in central bank funds via the European Central Bank's T2/TIPS infrastructure. EURO1 and STEP2 are designated as Systemically Important Payment Systems (SIPS) by the ECB, placing the company under the highest oversight standards and creating a structural regulatory moat. Connectivity is offered via SWIFTNet, SIANet, and EBICS, with a multi-vendor technical service provider ecosystem (Temenos, FIS, Form3, ACI, Oracle, IBM, Nexi) and FPAD-integrated fraud analytics providers (Featurespace, NetGuardians, ThreatMark, XTN, Inform).

Revenue is generated through a cost-recovery pricing model comprising three streams: per-transaction processing fees (tiered by volume and processing mode, typically EUR 0.001-0.002 per transaction charged to both sender and receiver), one-time joining fees (EUR 30,000 per participant plus EUR 300 per reachable BIC), and recurring annual fees (EUR 27,500-30,000 per participant plus settlement service fees). Additional revenue comes from optional services, value-added services, and batch processing surcharges. Pricing is structured to minimize costs for users while recovering infrastructure costs, with the company explicitly not pursuing profit maximization. Distribution is direct to financial institutions (credit institutions, PSPs, EMIs, PIs) via country representatives across all SEPA geographies, supplemented by technical service provider-mediated access for smaller institutions and liquidity provider support for RT1.

Name

EBA CLEARING

Legal name

ABE CLEARING S.A.S à capital variable

Website

https://ebaclearing.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

EBA CLEARING is a Paris-based, bank-owned (48 shareholders) pan-European payment infrastructure provider operating EURO1, STEP2, RT1, R2P, FPAD, and VOP, processing over 23 billion payments annually across SEPA for 4,800+ PSPs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Payment Clearing and Settlement Infrastructure

NAICS

Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (52232), Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320)

SIC

Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)

akta.pro primary industry

ACH & Batch Payments Clearing (FSABAJAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

A2A Payouts & Disbursements (FSAMAFAG), Payments Operations (ACH/Wire/RTGS, SWIFT, SEPA, Checks) (FSABALAB), A2A Payment Initiation Service Providers (PISPs) (FSAMAFAB), A2A Fraud, Risk & Authentication (FSAMAFAI), Payables & Disbursements (ACH/SEPA, wires, checks, virtual cards) (FSABAIAB)

Keywords

• Payment clearing infrastructure
• SEPA payment processing
• Instant payment systems
• Pan-European payment rails
• Payment fraud detection

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Transaction and Processing Fees: EBA CLEARING generates revenue through transaction fees charged per payment processed across its systems (EURO1, STEP2, RT1). Fees are typically charged per transaction to both sender and receiver, with tiered pricing based on volume. Additional fees include quarterly minimum charges and batch processing fees.
2. Joining and Annual Fees: One-time joining fees for new participants (typically EUR 30,000 per participant, EUR 300 per reachable BIC). Annual fees include participant fees, settlement service fees, and optional service fees for additional functionality.
3. Optional Service Fees: Additional fees for optional services including Additional Optional Services (AOS), Value-Added Services (VAS), network configuration changes, and batch processing capabilities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

EBA CLEARING provides pan-European payment infrastructure services for euro transactions, operating a portfolio of payment clearing and settlement systems that connect 4,800+ payment service providers across all SEPA countries. Its core systems include EURO1 (large-value single payments with immediate finality), STEP2 (SEPA bulk credit transfers and direct debits), RT1 (real-time 24/7 instant payments), R2P (request-to-pay messaging), and the FPAD fraud pattern and anomaly detection module integrated with VOP (verification of payee).

Product overview

EBA CLEARING operates a multi-service payment infrastructure platform comprising pan-European payment processing systems. The core portfolio includes EURO1 for large-value single payments (SIPS-designated), STEP2 for SEPA bulk payments including SCT, SDD Core, SDD B2B, and Card Clearing (SIPS-designated), RT1 for instant payments (SCT Inst and OCT Inst), and R2P for request-to-pay messaging. Value-added fraud and compliance services include FPAD (Fraud Pattern and Anomaly Detection) and VOP (Verification of Payee) integrated into STEP2-T and RT1. SEDA provides mandate management for SEPA Direct Debits. The company processes over 23 billion payments annually across these interconnected services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• EURO1: Single payment processing system providing immediate finality for processed payments, designated as a Systemically Important Payment System (SIPS) by the ECB.
• STEP2
• RT1
• R2P
• FPAD
• SEDA
• VOP

Products and services

• EURO1 Pan-European payment system for processing large-value and urgent euro payments between financial institutions, providing multilateral net settlement with immediate finality through the Single Obligation Structure (SOS). Designated as a Systemically Important Payment System (SIPS) by the European Central Bank and subject to the Settlement Finality Directive.
• STEP2 SEPA Payments (STEP2-T) Pan-European automated clearing house for SEPA payments, processing SEPA Credit Transfer (SCT), SEPA Direct Debit Core (SDD Core), SEPA Direct Debit B2B (SDD B2B) and Card Clearing via a continuous gross settlement mechanism. Designated as a Systemically Important Payment System (SIPS) by the European Central Bank.
• STEP2 SCT Bulk SEPA Credit Transfer service for processing euro credit transfers compliant with EPC SCT Scheme Rulebook; handles over 70 million transactions per day on average.
• STEP2 SDD Core SEPA Direct Debit Core service for processing retail direct debit collections in euro, compliant with EPC SDD Core Scheme Rulebook; processes over 47 million transactions per month.
• STEP2 SDD B2B SEPA Direct Debit B2B service for business-to-business direct debit collections in euro, compliant with EPC SDD B2B Scheme Rulebook.
• STEP2 Card Clearing (STEP2 CC) STEP2 Card Clearing System for processing card payments, providing secure settlement in T2 RTGS with no collateral requirement and liquidity-efficient multilateral netting.
• RT1 Instant Payments First pan-European real-time instant payment system processing euro instant credit transfers 24/7, compliant with EPC SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) Scheme, providing immediate finality and real-time message exchange across SEPA via TIPS settlement.
• RT1 SCT Inst SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) service under RT1 for processing real-time euro payments with instant settlement via TIPS.
• RT1 OCT Inst RT1 Outward Credit Transfer Instant service for cross-border transactions with one euro leg inside and one leg outside SEPA.
• FPAD (Fraud Pattern and Anomaly Detection) Real-time fraud prevention and detection service providing a pan-European network view on payment activity for SCT and SCT Inst transactions, identifying patterns of known fraud and anomalous payment behaviours.
• VOP (Verification of Payee) SEPA-wide Verification of Payee solution integrated with FPAD, aligned to EPC VOP Rulebook and EPC Directory Service, for combating authorised push payment fraud.
• R2P (Request to Pay) Pan-European Request to Pay messaging infrastructure based on a four-corner model enabling real-time request-to-pay message flow between service providers of payees and payers, separate from clearing and settlement.
• SEDA (SEPA-compliant Electronic Database Alignment) Electronic Database Alignment service for exchanging mandate-related information between creditor and debtor banks prior to direct debit collections.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 23 billion payments processed per year across all services
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration44 records

AI capability2 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• CBI (CBI S.c.p.a. Società Benefit)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 June 2026EBA CLEARING partners with CBI to enable Request to Pay services. CBI extends R2P functionality to the corporate market in Italy and SEPA area, leveraging EBA CLEARING's R2P infrastructure. CBI is a public limited consortium company and benefit corporation owned by banks, PSPs and Poste Italiane with over 30 years of experience in providing systemic services for the banking and financial sectors.
• Nexi GroupcoreTechnology or Integration · 17 June 2026Nexi provides technology for the R2P Request to Pay solution supporting corporates in Italy. Nexi operates as EBA CLEARING's technical operator for STEP2 (Nexi Payments). The partnership enables PSPs to offer R2P services leveraging Nexi's technology platform.
• Clearing Services (subsidiary of FIDA/Finans Danmark)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 June 2026EBA CLEARING collaborates with Finans Danmark (FIDA) through its subsidiary Clearing Services to operate STEP2 DKK Service for processing retail account-to-account bulk payments in Danish kroner. The service is a copy of EBA CLEARING's STEP2 SEPA Credit Transfer Service, scheduled to go live November 2026.
• Nexi PaymentscoreTechnology or IntegrationNexi Payments serves as the technical operator and provider of the STEP2 processing infrastructure. Provides state-of-the-art technology with exceptional resilience features across three processing sites.
• SWIFTcoreTechnology or IntegrationSWIFT provides network services for EURO1 and STEP2, enabling participants to connect through SWIFTNet. EURO1 benefits from SWIFT's state-of-the-art resilience as processing service provider.
• European Central Bank (ECB)coreTechnology or IntegrationECB provides T2 RTGS and TIPS settlement services used by EBA CLEARING systems (EURO1, STEP2, RT1). ECB acts as lead overseer for systemically important payment systems. ECB's deposit facility used for EURO1 liquidity pool.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Iberpay: Spanish national CSM operating SNCE (Sistema Nacional de Compensación Electrónica) for SEPA payments. Comparable as a European SEPA Clearing Service Mechanism with overlapping R2P connectivity and pan-European payment processing services.
• Stet: French payment systems operator owned by major French banks, processing SEPA payments. Comparable as a European CSM providing SEPA payment clearing and an R2P technical service provider integrated with EBA CLEARING's infrastructure.
• SWIFT: Global provider of secure financial messaging and network services that EBA CLEARING uses for connectivity (SWIFTNet) for EURO1 and STEP2. Both serve as critical payment infrastructure with overlapping roles in cross-border transaction routing and settlement.
• Nexi: Italian/European payments technology company that operates as EBA CLEARING's technical operator for STEP2 and provides the technology for R2P. Comparable as a European payments infrastructure provider with overlapping SEPA payment processing capabilities.

Broad incumbents

• Visa: Global card payments network operating Visa Direct for instant payments and B2B rails. Comparable as a major payment infrastructure operator serving PSPs and banks, though focused on card-based payments versus EBA CLEARING's account-to-account focus.
• Worldline: European payment services provider offering merchant acquiring, payment processing, and financial services. Comparable as a major European payment infrastructure and processing company serving banks and PSPs across SEPA.
• ACI Worldwide: Global real-time payments software provider serving banks and PSPs with payment processing technology. Comparable as infrastructure enabling payment clearing, fraud detection, and real-time payment capabilities for financial institutions globally.
• The Clearing House (TCH): US bank-owned payment infrastructure operator providing CHIPS for large-value payments and RTP (Real-Time Payments) network. Comparable as a bank-owned cooperative payment infrastructure provider operating real-time payment and large-value clearing systems.
• Mastercard: Global card payments network with Mastercard Send for real-time payments. Comparable as a large-scale payment infrastructure provider serving banks and PSPs with instant payment capabilities competing against RT1's instant payment rails.
• Federal Reserve (Fedwire/FedNow): US central bank operating Fedwire for large-value RTGS and FedNow for instant payments. Comparable as a central-bank-backed payment system operator serving financial institutions, parallel to EURO1's large-value and TIPS instant payment roles EBA CLEARING competes against.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses1 record

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/eba-clearing
• Xx.com/ebaclearing

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about EBA CLEARING