Definition
A PISP (Payment Initiation Service Provider) is a regulated provider that initiates a transfer from your bank account, with your consent.
No card, no Visa/Mastercard, no wallet: the money moves directly from your bank to the payee.
PISP vs card payments: the real difference
When you pay a merchant:
- With a card: the payment runs over the Visa/Mastercard networks, costs ~1.5–3% in fees, settles in one or two business days, and carries a risk of decline or fraud.
- With a PISP: the PISP uses your bank's API to trigger a SEPA Instant Credit Transfer for a few cents in fees, and the merchant is credited in under 10 seconds with no risk of non-payment.
The PISP never touches the money: it orders the movement, and it is your bank (the ASPSP) that executes it.
PISP vs AISP
- AISP — read-only (viewing accounts).
- PISP — action (initiating a payment).
A single app can hold both authorisations, but these are two distinct regulated activities.
What a PISP can do
- Initiate a SEPA transfer (standard or instant) from the PSU's account.
- Pre-fill the payee, amount and reference to smooth the experience.
- Confirm to the merchant that the payment has indeed been initiated (accepted by the bank).
- Operate across the entire EEA once authorised in one member state.
What a PISP cannot do
- Hold or keep the funds: the transfer goes from the PSU's account to the payee's, with no intermediate transit.
- Initiate a payment without explicit consent and without SCA from the PSU.
- Alter an authorised transfer or issue several on a single authorisation.
- Operate without ACPR authorisation or eIDAS certificates.
Within the PSD2 ecosystem
The PISP is the party that orders the payment, never the one that executes it: the flow of money stays entirely between the payer's ASPSP and the payee's.
Real-world examples
- Alternative to cards in e-commerce: Fintecture and Bridge offer a "Pay by bank transfer" button at checkout (Decathlon, Cdiscount). The customer approves with SCA in their bank, the merchant is credited almost instantly, with no defaults.
- Bill payment: Lydia Pro and Trustly settle a bill (rent, energy, taxes) in a single click, with no IBAN to type in.
- BNPL: Klarna and Sofort use their PISP authorisation to initiate the debit of an instalment payment.
- B2B — collections: GoCardless Instant Bank Pay triggers a customer transfer in place of a SEPA direct debit, ideal for urgent collections or large amounts.