A strong, dynamic and secure payments system is integral to the EU's future prosperity, whether in terms of facilitating everyday purchases, the paying of wages or making business transactions.
As consumers' and businesses' demands change and technology advances, there is a pressing need to ensure our legislative and regulatory environment facilitates putting Europe "at the cutting edge of what making a payment could mean in the future" (Green Paper: Towards an integrated European market for card, internet and mobile payments). Current innovations including contactless, mobile and e-payments are growing in use; we need to leverage the best these technologies can offer, whilst facilitating the innovations of tomorrow.
Meeting this goal requires governments, parliamentarians, consumers and businesses to work together to build a framework that protects the best of what we currently have, whilst facilitating tomorrow's innovations.
The event helped to facilitate an ongoing conversation about:
• What will payments look like in the future?
• How best to foster innovation;
• Barriers to entry and development, and how to overcome them;
• Future steps to ensure a level playing field for all concerned.
Speakers included Carsten Höltkemeyer, General Manager, Barclaycard Germany, Erik Nooteboom, Head of the Retail Financial Services and Consumer Policy Unit, DG Internal Market and Services at the European Commission and David Birch, Director, Consult Hyperion.