Germany-based bank Sparkasse has announced offering its customers a new function for digital payments.

At Sparkasse, users can now pay with the digital Girocard via Giropay, as was reported by Caschy’s Blog. This includes the existing services of Paydirekt, Kwitt, and the former Giropay. From now on, customers will be able to make use of the discount campaigns as well as buyer protection. Sparkasse customers can use their Girocard with the new functions via the Android app "Mobile Payment".

First shops are adapting to the new function

While the mobile payment option of the bank's digital giro card could previously only be shown offline via NFC, this is now also possible online. This only works if the shop where the user wants to buy is also connected to the new Giropay. Some dealers, such as the drugstore chain DM have already switched. Other shops like MediaMarkt aim to follow suit in the next few days and also offer the Giropay payment function.

Germany-based bank Sparkasse has announced offering its customers a new function for digital payments.

How giropay works

The aim is to facilitate the online payment experience as much as possible with giropay. Users also have the possibility to transfer money from account to account among private customers. According to the operators, giropay has around 7.5 million users so far. Customers have access to buyer protection when they pay via their giropay login. Users data not only remains encrypted, but is also stored on secure servers in Germany.

The 2021 merger

In 2021, the online payment methods Paydirekt, Giropay, and Kwitt gradually began to merge their functions under the Giropay brand. The aim was for banks in Germany to standardise the process of online payments. It was in March of 2021 that the five major banking associations, which came together to form the German Banking Industry Interest Group, announced that they were merging their online payment methods.

Approval by German Federal Cartel Office

In March of 2022, the German Federal Cartel Office gave the go-ahead for the further development and expansion of giropay. However, the Cartel Office made it a condition that the intended exclusivity obligation be abandoned. The exclusivity agreement, which was intended to secure the investments, was therefore waived. paydirekt is responsible for the central organisation of contracts and the operation of the payment process.

Sparkasse launches new online payment function via Giropay

First shops are adapting to the new function

How giropay works

The 2021 merger

Approval by German Federal Cartel Office