Visa has signed an exclusive six-month deal with cross-border payments network Eurogiro to extend its person-to-person money transfer service to EU current account holders.
The deal means that Visa Direct customers will be able to send money not just to Visa cards but also to bank accounts in any of the Eurogiro member countries.
Jim Self, VP, Visa EU says that as a result of the partnership: "Visa Direct customers can send money to those who don't even have a Visa card."
Visa Direct was introduced to allow low-value cross-border transfers between individuals. This was in response to the regulations introduced in July last year, whereby cross border transfers in euros within the EU should not be priced differently from domestic transfers.
To transfer money, all the sender needs is the e-mail address or account number of the recipient.
Eight banks have so far committed to launch Visa Direct, including Carta Si in Italy, BBVA in Spain and Corner Banca in Switzerland.