Verification of Payee (VoP) is a mandatory regulation now — but meeting the minimum minimum standards is not the same as having a system operating efficiently for your business, your operations, and your customers.
As the October EPC deadline looms, PSPs have an important choice to make:
Wait for a central bank-powered VoP utility, or join forces with an expert provider such as TechnoXander.
At first glance, a centralised scheme would appear to be hassle-free. However, if you lay out features, support, and flexibility against each other, the disparity is hard to miss.
1) Full-Stack Functionality vs Basic Compliance
Central bank-driven VoP utilities are designed to meet the EPC rulebook — traditionally a single API with a yes/no name match. That might be sufficient for compliance, but it is too bare-bones for enterprise standards such as bulk processing, customised matching algorithm, and cross-border checks for non-SEPA countries.
TechnoXander’s platform is way more than the minimum as PSPs get:
- Developer-friendly APIs and a user-friendly self-service portal
- Real-time insights to track match rates, response times, and fraud indicators
- Matching algorithm customisation to process nicknames, typos, and cultural differences
- Bulk file processing with debulking to support large payment files
- Global reach with IBAN verification in 83+ countries and Bank Account Verification in 16+ countries
Case in point:
Regional PSP decided to go with the central bank’s VoP utility and removed vendor onboarding phase totally.
Then ended up building dashboards and bulk processing functionality to support corporate customers and internal ops teams. Without a debulking facility, the PSP had to develop middleware at its own cost, introducing 6 weeks’ delay and budgeting issues.
2) Real Partnership vs Passive Utility
A VoP go-live isn’t just about building an API — it’s about handling certificates, onboarding, testing, and operational readiness. Specialist partners like TechnoXander provide a dedicated project team from architecture design to post-launch monitoring, ensuring you’re never left guessing.
With a central bank utility, onboarding is procedural, support is minimal, and contracts are rigid. There’s little room for negotiation or operational flexibility.
Case in point:
A fintech is directly integrating with its central bank’s VoP utility. They have outsourced tech build to another tech provider. The responses to the queries from outsourced providers on VoP connectivity from central banks are slow which means fintech is paying for hours which are not utlitised building but waiting for responses.
3) Built for Reality vs Designed by Committee
Expert providers update their product rapidly in respect to customer requirements and regulatory trends in fraud. Releases can be sent within weeks, rather than years, permitting PSPs to enhance match rates, decrease false positives, and remain in front of fraud techniques.
Governance cycles are followed by central bank-led schemes. There is little or no user feedback loop, and features are frozen by design.
Case in point:
A TechnoXander customer can use name matching in 16+ countries with new features and countries being added every now and then. Central banks wouldn’t do this.
4) True Cost: Total Cost of Ownership vs Sticker Price
Central bank options might seem lower cost initially but often in the in-flight features drive costs into operations and IT. Developing middleware, dashboards, or exception workflows internally takes time and budget.
Specialist providers offer a platform-ready-to-run, minimising internal dev effort and operational overhead in flight.
Real-world example:
A bank took the “free” central bank route to save budget. Three months later, its IT team had logged 300+ hours creating tools to handle disputes and batch processing. The project consumed more resources than a paid specialist solution — and still lacked analytics or configurable matching.
5) Best VoP Provider? The Benchmark Checklist
When evaluating VoP solutions, use this short but critical checklist:
- Bulk & debulk support for corporate payment volumes
- Customisable matching rules for nicknames, cultural differences, typos
- QWAC procurement assistance and EPC onboarding assistance
- Cross-border — IBAN/BIC verification and SEPA reachability data
- Real-time analytics & dashboards
- Clear SLAs with live support and escalation routes
If a solution can’t check most of these boxes, it might not be fit for purpose.
Conclusion: More Than a Checkbox
VoP compliance is not negotiable — but the method in which you achieve it makes all the difference between smooth payment operations and continuously playing with fire.
Central bank utilities will put you across the regulatory line, but in most cases at the expense of flexibility, scalability, and speed. Specialist providers such as TechnoXander enable you to go live rapidly, remain compliant, and evolve as your business expands.
The actual question isn’t “Who’s cheapest?” — it’s “Who will keep my payments flowing without operational headaches?”
👉 Book a 15-minute VoP strategy call
Let’s help you go live quickly — and intelligently.
🔗 [Book your VoP Demo here]
