ING and Atos Origin form European alliance in SEPA payment services

Amsterdam, Utrecht, May 2008 -ING and Atos Origin have launched a joint offering of end-to-end services for back-office payment processing to banks and corporations within Europe. It is the first time that a bank and an IT services provider are partnering in this domain in Europe.



The unique service enables banks to comply with EU regulation on payment processing (e.g. SEPA/PSD ), without having to re-engineer their underlying IT systems themselves. For corporations the offering includes the establishment of a single, centralized in-house banking solution, resulting in a simplified handling of payments at lower cost.



The two companies have identified a clear demand in the volatile payments market, and are combining the payment processing expertise of ING with Atos Origin’s consulting and systems integration capability. Atos Origin will not only be responsible for business consultancy, but also for the entire change process, including disentangling of IT-systems, system migration and possible end-of-life services. ING will deliver payment processing services compliant with the latest EU regulations.



This partnership offers the following opportunities:

Customers benefit from a white label payments processing service provided by ING as well as Atos Origin’s IT change and integration services. Associated banks will handle their payment transactions as if they were processed on customers’ own systems under their own logo, only using the ING systems in the background. This end-to-end service enables customers to meet EU regulations on time, without having to re-engineer their systems themselves. They also won’t need to invest in updating their systems, as they can enjoy the full benefits of future developments based on investments made by ING.
International corporations traditionally process their transactions and internal money transfers through local banks. This ‘local-for-local’ situation requires them to maintain sufficient capital on their balances in the various countries. In the new SEPA environment a single account can be used to handle all payments. This enhances transparency and simplifies cash flows, resulting in less working capital, lower capital cost and improved cash and treasury management. By supporting these corporations with an in-house bank in the required organisational and IT changes, the alliance will help corporations achieve significant cost reduction.
Robert Heisterborg, Global Head of Payments & Cash Management at ING Wholesale Banking explains: “This alliance is fully in line with our strategy to be one of the leading European Payments and Cash Management providers. It supports our mission to be a true partner to our clients, offering end-to-end financial services.”

Rob Pols, CEO of Atos Origin in the Netherlands concludes: “Partnering with ING offers a unique one-stop-shop offer to both banks and corporations in which economies of scale, speed and the ability to execute are paramount. It shows an innovative approach towards doing business and strengthens our ability to deliver a high level of service to our internationally operating customers in the payment sector”.