Regulations and compliance
What Is Confirmation of Payee?
Last Updated: April 9, 2026Confirmation of Payee (CoP) is a real-time name-matching service that checks whether the payee name provided by a sender corresponds to the name registered to the destination account at the recipient’s bank or payment service provider, before the payment instruction is processed. The check is embedded in the payment journey at the pre-authorisation stage, giving...
What Is Verification of Payee?
Last Updated: April 9, 2026Verification of Payee (VoP) is a real-time name-to-account matching service that checks whether the payee name entered by the sender corresponds to the name registered to the destination account at the recipient’s payment service provider, before the payment instruction is executed. By surfacing mismatches at the pre-authorisation stage, VoP gives payers the opportunity to confirm,...
What is PCI DSS? The best explanation
Last Updated: April 9, 2026PCI DSS is a globally recognised security standard that specifies the technical and operational requirements organisations must implement to protect cardholder data (CHD) and sensitive authentication data (SAD) across all environments where card payments are stored, processed, or transmitted. It was established by the PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC), an independent body founded in...
What are the key concerns when choosing the core banking system from the perspective of regulatory compliance?
Last Updated: April 9, 2026Selecting a core banking system involves more than evaluating technical features. For payment institutions and e-money institutions operating under PSD2, GDPR, and AML directives, the system’s ability to support banking system regulatory compliance across multiple dimensions is a primary selection criterion. A system that cannot generate accurate regulatory reports, enforce data protection controls, or adapt...
What is Open Banking, and why do banks, payment institutions and e-money institutions in the EU must publish Open Banking API?
Last Updated: April 9, 2026Open banking is a framework that enables authorised third-party providers to access financial account data and initiate payments on behalf of customers, through secure and standardised application programming interfaces (APIs), subject to the customer’s explicit consent. In the European Union, this framework is governed by the Revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2), which imposes a legal...
What is strong customer authentication (SCA) regulatory technical standard (RTS)?
Last Updated: April 9, 2026Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) is a security requirement introduced under the EU’s Revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) that obligates payment service providers to verify user identity using a minimum of two independent authentication factors before granting access to a payment account or processing an electronic payment transaction. The technical framework governing how SCA must be...
Can push notifications be considered compliant with SCA RTS?
Last Updated: April 9, 2026Strong Customer Authentication requires payment service providers to authenticate users using at least two independent factors drawn from the categories of knowledge, possession, and inherence. A push notification delivered to a user’s registered mobile device can qualify as a possession factor within an SCA-compliant authentication flow, but only when it meets the technical and operational...
Why is it important to use multi-factor authentication (MFA) when accessing a cloud-based core banking system?
Last Updated: April 9, 2026Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a security mechanism that requires a user to present two or more independent verification factors before being granted access to a system. In the context of a cloud-based core banking system, where the application is accessible over the internet from any location, MFA is the critical control that prevents unauthorised access...
Why is it essential to have comprehensive user management in the banking software?
Last Updated: July 16, 2023In the realm of core banking systems, comprehensive user management is far from a mere convenience—it’s an absolute necessity. Let’s delve into the critical elements of user management in a banking software and uncover its significance in fortifying security, ensuring compliance, and enhancing operational efficiency. Robust Access Control: The Guard at the Gate A core...
Why is it important for the modern cloud-based core banking system to be built around a general ledger and have a chart of accounts?
Last Updated: July 16, 2023In today’s dynamic financial environment, a modern core banking system must serve as more than just a platform for transactions—it should double as a comprehensive financial management tool and a fully fledged bank account software. A bank account software built around a general ledger, equipped with a well-defined chart of accounts, is vital to maintaining...
Is it possible to obtain necessary information for regulatory reporting if an institution uses a core banking system with no general ledger and chart of accounts?
Last Updated: April 13, 2026Regulatory reporting software is the system layer responsible for extracting, formatting, and submitting the financial and operational data that payment institutions and e-money institutions must provide to their national competent authority on a defined schedule. For regulatory reporting software to function accurately, it requires a structured, consistently classified source of financial data to draw from....
Why is there a need for customer risk scoring and transaction risk scoring?
Last Updated: April 13, 2026Customer risk scoring and transaction risk scoring are two distinct but closely related functions within a financial institution’s risk management and compliance framework. Customer risk scoring evaluates the inherent risk profile of each customer at onboarding and on an ongoing basis. Transaction risk scoring rates individual transactions as they occur, assessing each one against defined...
Why is it ineffective or even dangerous to outsource the risk scoring from a third party without having it as a part of the cloud-based core banking software?
Last Updated: April 13, 2026Risk scoring is a core function of AML/CTF and financial crime compliance management in any financial institution. It requires continuous access to customer data, transaction history, behavioural patterns, and customer activity context, all of which reside within the institution’s own core banking infrastructure. When risk scoring is outsourced to a third-party provider operating outside that...