Companies Face Payments Freeze upon SEPA Deadline

European Union (EU) companies have less than four weeks to comply with the new single euro payments area (SEPA). Otherwise, their payments systems will be shut down,
The Irish Independent
reports.

SEPA, which will provide a common payment processing system across the EU, goes live on 1 February 2014. Any companies that fail to upgrade their systems will be unable to pay suppliers and staff or receive payments from customers.

A December survey, completed by the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (ISME), found that only 22% of the country’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were SEPA compliant.

“Companies that do not get ready for SEPA won’t be able to pay their staff or suppliers; it is as simple as that,” said Sean Fitzgerald, chief executive (CEO) of Sentenial, a financial software group that has been helping European banks and corporations in the transition to SEPA.

“However, it is certainly not too late to take action and hundreds of companies we are talking to started the new year with upgrading to SEPA compliance at the top of their to do list.”

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