AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
Part of the guideOne account, every currency: a guide for cross-border businesses
The short answer
Under the EU Instant Payments Regulation, every bank in the euro area that offers euro transfers had to be able to receive instant payments from 9 January 2025 and to send them from 9 October 2025, at a price no higher than a standard transfer. Instant transfers arrive within 10 seconds, at any hour, every day of the year. From the same October date, banks must also offer Verification of Payee, a free check that the name matches the IBAN, on both standard and instant euro transfers.
For most of SEPA's history, a euro transfer arrived the next business day, and instant payments were optional and often cost extra. The Instant Payments Regulation changed both. This article explains what the rules require, what has changed for business payers and receivers, and what still lies ahead. For how euro balances fit alongside other currencies, see our guide to multi-currency business accounts.
What changed, and when
| Requirement | Banks in the euro area | Banks in EU countries outside the euro | Payment and e-money institutions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Receive instant euro payments | 9 January 2025 | 9 January 2027 | 9 April 2027 |
| Send instant euro payments | 9 October 2025 | 9 July 2027 | 9 April 2027 (euro area); 9 July 2027 (outside) |
| Price no higher than a standard transfer | 9 January 2025 | 9 January 2027 | With the send and receive obligations |
| Verification of Payee | 9 October 2025 | 9 July 2027 | With the send obligation |
The regulation also changed how banks screen for sanctions. Rather than checking each instant payment, they must check their own customers against EU sanctions lists at least once a day, which removes a common cause of instant payments being held. Payment and e-money institutions can now also join the euro systems that settle instant payments directly, which should widen choice once their deadlines arrive.
What it means day to day
- Money arrives in 10 seconds, at any time. A customer paying at 9 pm on a Saturday is credited within seconds, not on Monday.
- No premium for speed. If a standard euro transfer is free on your plan, an instant one must be free too.
- Limits are set by you and your provider. The interbank cap on instant payments was removed in the euro area from 9 October 2025. Payers can set their own per-payment and daily limits, which is worth doing for business accounts.
- Cash can be used sooner. Customer receipts that arrive instantly can fund supplier payments or payroll the same day, which shortens the gap between being paid and paying out.
There are knock-on effects for finance teams. If customers can pay at any hour, receipts arrive outside the working week, and reconciliation works best when it runs continuously rather than in a Monday batch. Cash forecasts can assume money is usable on the day it is sent, which may reduce the buffer you keep for supplier runs.
Instant does not mean reversible. Once an instant payment is credited, getting it back depends on the recipient's cooperation, so the checks before sending matter more than before.
Verification of Payee: the part that needs action
Verification of Payee (VoP) compares the name you enter with the name on the account behind the IBAN, before you authorise the payment. The bank must return one of four results: match, close match (with the correct name shown), no match, or not possible to check. It applies to all SEPA credit transfers, instant or not, and must be free.
Three points matter for businesses:
- Names must be exact. Your customers' banks will now check your name. Give the legal name on your euro account, not a trading name, on every invoice.
- Bulk payments can opt out. A business payer may choose not to receive VoP checks for payment files, and may opt back in. Opting out speeds up batch runs but removes a warning.
- A warning shifts the risk. A close match or no match does not stop the payment, but if you authorise it after a warning and it reaches the wrong person, you are likely to bear the loss.
A sensible internal rule: on a close match, correct the name and check again; on a no match, stop and confirm the details with the payee by phone, using a number you already hold rather than one from the invoice. Record the outcome, because it shows you followed a process if a payment is later disputed.
The UK runs a similar check, Confirmation of Payee, for sterling payments. Our explainer on IBANs, sort codes and SWIFT codes covers both.
Worked example: a Friday evening supplier payment
A Dutch wholesaler needs to pay a supplier in Italy €40,000 to release goods held for collection on Saturday morning. It approves the payment at 6 pm on Friday. The fee figures are illustrative.
| Standard SEPA transfer | SEPA Instant (since October 2025) | |
|---|---|---|
| Arrives | Next business day: Monday | Within 10 seconds: Friday evening |
| Goods released | Monday at the earliest | Saturday morning as planned |
| Fee on a plan charging €0.50 per standard transfer | €0.50 | No more than €0.50 |
| Name check before sending | Verification of Payee | Verification of Payee |
Before October 2025 the wholesaler might have paid a premium for an instant transfer, if its bank offered one at all. Now it pays the same and the goods move two days earlier. For businesses that receive euros, the gain is the reverse: weekend and evening sales settle immediately.
What to do now
- Check that the legal name on your euro account matches the name on your invoices.
- Set sensible per-payment and daily limits for instant payments, with approvals above a threshold.
- Decide whether to keep VoP on for bulk payment files, and record why.
- Update supplier onboarding so new bank details are verified by a second channel before the first payment.
- If you are outside the euro area or use a payment institution, check when your provider's deadlines fall.
- Update cash-flow forecasts to reflect receipts that can now arrive in the evening and at weekends.
Moving from SWIFT to local euro payments is covered in our comparison of SWIFT and local payment rails.
Where Pryme fits
Pryme accounts hold EUR alongside sterling, dollar and Naira balances, with local details for each currency, including a euro IBAN, so euro customers can pay as they would a local business. Check in the app which local details and payment types your business account shows before you put them on an invoice. Approval thresholds with a second named approver and a PIN at the last step, described on the security page, add a control before a payment is released.
Outside Nigeria, Pryme's services are provided through regulated partners. Whichever provider you choose, ask whether its euro details support SEPA Instant in both directions, whether outgoing payments run a Verification of Payee check, and what its limits are. For the wider choice of provider, see the multi-currency business account guide.
Questions people ask
Is SEPA Instant free for businesses?
Not necessarily free, but it cannot cost more than a standard SEPA transfer at the same provider. If your plan includes free standard euro transfers, instant ones must be free too. This price rule has applied in the euro area since 9 January 2025.
What is the maximum amount for a SEPA Instant payment?
There is no longer an interbank maximum in the euro area. Your bank or payment provider may set its own limits, and payers can choose per-payment and daily limits for their accounts. Check the limits on your business account before sending large amounts.
What is Verification of Payee?
It is a free check, required since 9 October 2025 in the euro area, that compares the payee name you enter with the name on the account behind the IBAN. It applies to standard and instant transfers. If you go ahead after a no-match warning, you may bear the loss.
Can a business turn off Verification of Payee?
Business payers can opt out of the check for bulk payments and opt back in later. Doing so speeds up batch processing but removes a protection against misdirected payments, so many businesses keep it on for new or changed payees.
Does SEPA Instant apply to UK businesses?
The regulation binds payment providers in the EU, not UK banks. A UK business can still send and receive instant euro payments if its euro account is with a provider that offers them. Ask your provider whether it supports SEPA Instant and Verification of Payee.
Sources
- European Central Bank: Instant Payments Regulation · accessed Oct 2026
- Ibec: Instant payments and Verification of Payee (Oct 2025) · accessed Oct 2026
- PwC Legal: Verification of Payee requirements under the EU Instant Payments Regulation · accessed Oct 2026
- Danske Bank: The Instant Payments Regulation · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.