The European Central Bank is working with a steering committee of major European banks on plans to develop a person-to-person mobile payment network for funds transfers across the Eurozone.
In an interview with RTL Nieuws broadcast, ECB executive board member Yves Mersch said the system would link e-mail adresses and mobile phone numbers to an individual's International Bank Account Number (Iban). The system would supplement national mobile-to-mobile schemes by providing a system for cross-border transfers.
"To send payment over your telephone from one country to another, you go onto your contact list, you take the name of a person, and you would immediately also get his Iban," Mersch said.
The ECB has yet to set a deadline for the implementation of the project, Mersch told the broadcaster, but will have a blueprint ready by the end of the summer.