Open Banking – a catalyst for the success of A2A payments

Nikogiannis Karantzis, CEO of ISX Financial, looks into how A2A payments can further advance leveraging Open Banking tech.

From your perspective, what specific infrastructure or regulatory shifts have accelerated the adoption of Open Banking-based A2A payments?

In Europe and the UK, Open Banking adoption has been underpinned by two critical forces: regulatory clarity and technological readiness. PSD2 compelled banks to expose APIs securely, while schemes such as SEPA Instant and the UK’s Faster Payments Service matured into reliable, near-instantaneous settlement networks.

For merchants, this convergence means transactions settle in seconds, not days, solving one of the most persistent pain points in digital commerce. This shift enables businesses to manage liquidity more effectively, reduce operational risk, and deliver a superior customer experience by aligning payment confirmation with fulfilment readiness. At ISX, we’ve built directly on this foundation, enabling our PaidBy® platform to provide certainty of funds in real time. This isn’t just about faster payments; it’s about transforming operational agility for merchants and enhancing customer trust through immediate delivery readiness.

The broader implications for the financial ecosystem are equally significant. Instant account-to-account (A2A) payments are reshaping traditional settlement models and creating opportunities for innovation in credit, refunds, and even loyalty solutions. As more markets adopt real-time payment infrastructure, Open Banking is positioned to become the default mode for secure, low-cost payments globally.

In which ecommerce verticals have Open Banking A2A integrations proven most successful, and where have technical bottlenecks persisted? What strategies have proven most effective in increasing A2A uptake over other payment methods?

We’ve seen particular success in high-value, trust-sensitive verticals like travel, insurance, and B2B marketplaces. For these sectors, cost efficiency and instant settlement are critical. Merchants value Open Banking’s ability to bypass interchange fees while delivering a payment experience that is both secure and seamless. Customers, in turn, benefit from real-time debits that use funds already in their accounts, aligning with the preference in European markets for debit over credit.

Yet, challenges remain. Fragmented API standards across banks and inconsistent Strong Customer Authentication flows have introduced friction in some markets. ISX addresses these challenges through our unified API layer in PaidBy®, which abstracts complexity and standardises user journeys. This has been instrumental in enabling merchants to focus on their core business without worrying about technical barriers or reconciliation delays.

Adoption also relies on user experience parity. PaidBy® mirrors card-like checkouts for consumers while providing merchants with real-time settlement notifications and automated reconciliation tools. This means businesses no longer rely on manual CSV uploads, turning what was once hours of delay into seconds of certainty. Our approach is not only to replace legacy card networks but also to deliver an operational model that fits modern ecommerce and omnichannel demands.

How is ISX’s PaidBy® solution helping businesses go beyond A2A payments with added-value services?

PaidBy® is designed as a full-stack payment solution. Beyond initiating payments, it provides merchants with dedicated IBANs under our institutional codes and real-time API hooks that notify them the moment funds are received, not merely sent. This distinction is vital. Other providers often confirm initiation, but merchants are left in uncertainty if payments fail due to insufficient funds or blocked accounts.

We’ve also layered value-added services: automated refund management, business intelligence dashboards that analyse transaction patterns, and advanced fraud prevention tools. Our proactive AI models detect behavioural cues like confusion during high-risk transactions, enabling us to intervene against authorised push payment (APP) fraud in real time.

The broader ecosystem benefits from such innovations. PaidBy® allows merchants to integrate payment processes with their ERP systems, ensuring financial operations are tightly aligned. As a result, merchants gain efficiencies across settlement, reconciliation, and customer service, all of which contribute to stronger business resilience and customer satisfaction.

Which industry trends and innovations do you expect to shape Open Banking-based A2A payments in the near future?

Three major trends stand out:

1. Variable Recurring Payments (VRPs): these will enable merchants to initiate secure, customer-consented pull payments, ideal for subscriptions and utilities. VRPs address one of the longstanding gaps in Open Banking by providing a flexible alternative to direct debits and standing orders.
2. POS integration: Open Banking will extend beyond ecommerce into physical retail. ISX is developing ‘on-glass’ payment solutions for mobile devices and terminals, offering an alternative to card schemes at checkout. This innovation opens up entirely new use cases where merchants can offer instant A2A payments even at the point of sale.
3. Proactive fraud mitigation: the rise of APP fraud demands a shift from reactive reimbursements to preventive measures. ISX leads in this space with AI technology that detects emotional signals of coercion during payment authorisation – a unique, forward-thinking approach.

Looking ahead, the broader industry trend points to Open Banking evolving into Open Finance, where payments converge with lending, savings, and investment services to create more integrated financial ecosystems for merchants and consumers alike. Businesses that embrace these changes early will gain a competitive advantage through lower costs, faster cash flow, and greater customer loyalty.

This editorial piece was first published in The Paypers' Account-to-Account Payments Report 2025, which features insights into global trends, key players, partnerships, and the next phase of the A2A evolution. Access the full report to understand where the A2A payments ecosystem stands today and what’s next.

About the author

Nikogiannis Karantzis is the founder and Managing Director/CEO of ISX. He holds qualifications in engineering (University of Western Australia), law, and business (University of Melbourne). Nikogiannis has over 30 years of experience across several sectors, including payments, electronic money, online media, AML, defence, and secure communications.

 

 

About ISX Financial

ISX Financial EU PLC is a 'banktech' company that leverages its technology to provide financial services to merchants across the EEA and the UK. The company's combined payments stack and infrastructure provide complete end-to-end transactional banking, A2A payments, FX, remittance, and payment processing capability. ISXMoney's multi-currency IBAN accounts, alongside PaidBy®’s instant Open Banking, provide merchants with a tailored payment solution to reach any UK or EEA bank account holders.