Experian, the global information services company, has announced that it has partnered with HypoVereinsbank (HVB), one of the largest commercial banks in Germany, to provide the bank and its corporate customers with a data validation and conversion service to aid compliance with the latest SEPA (Single Euro Payment Area) standards. HVB is part of the UniCredit Group, the 10th largest European financial institution.

To make payments to and f r o m all 31 countries participating in the SEPA scheme, banks and their corporate customers must supply a valid IBAN (International Bank Account Number) and BIC (Bank Identifier Code). Currently, the data held by HVB’s customers is in a domestic format and will need converting to the new, SEPA-compliant format.

Experian will check, validate and convert existing domestic BBANs (Basic Bank Account Numbers) to the required BIC and IBAN standard in bulk. This will enable HVB’s customers to avoid rejection or failed payments, thereby reducing transaction costs and improving straight through processing of payment instructions. In addition, the bank’s customers will also be able to identify invalid records that require further or correct information to be obtained or verified, including invalid account numbers and closed bank branches.

Markus Straussfeld, head of international cash management sales at HVB, said: “We want to ensure the transition to SEPA is as smooth as possible for our customers and Experian’s systems help them to overcome the hurdle of not always having the appropriate data at hand to efficiently make SEPA transactions. As organisations within the Eurozone face the prospect of contacting potentially millions of customers for SEPA payments, we have turned to Experian Payments as an expert with a proven track record in data validation and conversion. As a result, we are in a position to support our customers in areas outside of our core competences, offering them additional services f r o m trusted partners.”

Jonathan Williams, Director of Strategic Development at Experian Payments, added: “Corporates may not realise that they, not the banks, are responsible for their BIC and IBAN conversion. However, this is hugely expensive and virtually impossible. Our partnership with HVB is enabling a growing number of the world’s largest businesses to make SEPA payments efficiently and cost-effectively while, at the same time, helping the bank to provide an additional service to its customers.”