Across Europe, merchants are under pressure from rising card fees, chargebacks and stricter risk rules that can block card payments right when customers are ready to buy. At the same time, more shoppers are happy to pay directly from their bank account, especially as SEPA instant transfers become widely available.
YowPay sits exactly at this crossroads. It gives e-commerce and retail businesses a turnkey way to offer Instant SEPA transfers as a smooth, conversion-optimised payment option, alongside cards and other methods you already accept. The result: more completed orders, lower payment costs and cash that is available immediately for payouts and reinvestment.
What Is YowPay?
YowPay is a payment platform that enables merchants to accept Instant SEPA transfers across Europe through a single, unified solution. It is designed for both online and in-person sales, combining smart payment routing, dedicated business IBANs and a mobile point-of-sale app.
Instead of building your own bank integrations or managing multiple providers, YowPay acts as a turnkey SEPA payment layer over your existing business. Payments are processed via a regulated European electronic money issuer, and funds are routed directly to your Instant Business SEPA IBANs so they are available straight away.
YowPay is based in Luxembourg and provides live demos and ongoing merchant support to help businesses get up and running quickly and confidently.
Why Instant SEPA Transfers Matter for European Merchants
SEPA instant transfers allow bank‑to‑bank payments to move in near real time between participating European banks. For merchants, that unlocks a powerful combination of benefits:
- Speed– Funds arrive in your payment account almost immediately, instead of waiting on batch card settlements or traditional bank transfer delays.
- Liquidity– With money arriving instantly, you can pay suppliers, issue customer refunds or launch new campaigns without tying up working capital.
- Coverage across Europe– SEPA instant is available in many banks across the SEPA area, making it relevant whether you sell domestically or cross‑border.
- Bank‑level authentication– Customers approve payments directly in their bank environment, with strong customer authentication built in.
On their own, however, instant transfers can still feel clunky for customers: they may need to copy IBANs, retype payment references or switch between apps. YowPay solves this by turning SEPA instant into an easy, guided checkout experience that feels as simple as paying by card.
How YowPay Works
YowPay combines three key elements into one integrated platform:
- Multiple ways for customers to initiate Instant SEPA transfers.
- Smart routing that selects the best method for each payer.
- Instant Business SEPA IBANs dedicated to your inflows and card settlements.
Three Ways Customers Can Pay by Bank Transfer
At checkout, your customer can choose to pay by bank transfer instead of (or in addition to) card payment options. YowPay then offers three convenient ways to complete the SEPA instant payment:
- EPC QR Code scan– The customer simply scans an EPC QR Code with their mobile banking app. All payment details (IBAN, amount, reference) are pre‑filled in their app, so they just confirm the payment.
- Open Banking / PIS– The customer selects their bank and goes through a Payment Initiation Service (PIS) flow. YowPay connects to the bank via Open Banking so the transfer is initiated securely with the right details.
- Manual transfer with pre‑filled data– If the customer prefers, they can manually enter the bank transfer details. YowPay provides accurate IBAN, amount and reference, reducing errors and support tickets.
In every case, the payment is confirmed in the customer’s own banking environment, using the bank’s usual security and strong customer authentication. Once confirmed, the funds are sent as an Instant SEPA transfer to your YowPay payment account.
Intelligent Routing for Higher Conversion
One of YowPay’s strengths is that it does not force every customer into a single method. Instead, it offers smart routing between the three SEPA flows. This intelligent routing helps to:
- Match the best flow to each user– Some customers are comfortable scanning a QR code, others prefer Open Banking, and some like traditional manual transfers.
- Reduce friction and abandonments– By offering a choice, you avoid losing customers whose card is at its limit or who are reluctant to enter card details.
- Optimise success rates– If one method is unavailable or a bank connection is down, having alternatives keeps your checkout resilient.
The result is a bank transfer payment experience designed for conversion, not just for back‑office convenience.
Instant Business SEPA IBANs (BE/FR)
Under the hood, YowPay provides merchants with Instant Business SEPA IBANs in Belgium and France. These IBANs are at the heart of how the platform manages and separates your inflows:
- B2B and C2B inflows– Whether your customers are businesses or consumers, their Instant SEPA transfers arrive on your dedicated business IBANs. This is ideal for e-commerce payments, professional services or recurring billing.
- Dedicated IBANs for card settlement– If you also accept cards, YowPay can route card settlements to a separate dedicated IBAN. This makes reconciliation and cash‑flow planning simpler and more transparent.
- Funds instantly available for payouts– Because payments are processed through a regulated electronic money issuer and credited to your payment account, funds are available immediately for supplier payments, refunds or other payouts.
- No rolling reserves– Unlike many card‑centric acquirers that hold rolling reserves, YowPay’s model means you access your money without reserve holdbacks, which is especially valuable for SMEs and fast‑growing merchants.
Security, Regulation and Data Protection
YowPay is built to be both merchant‑friendly and security‑first. Key safeguards include:
- Regulated European electronic money issuer– The payment accounts used for your Instant Business SEPA IBANs are opened with a regulated electronic money institution in Europe. This provides a robust regulatory framework for how funds are handled.
- Two‑factor authentication– Access to payment accounts and sensitive actions are protected with two‑factor authentication (2FA), adding a strong extra layer of security.
- Withdrawals restricted to pre‑approved accounts– YowPay only allows funds to be withdrawn to pre‑approved bank accounts, which can be your company account or a group company account. This greatly reduces the risk of misdirection or fraud.
- No e‑wallet confusion– YowPay is not a consumer e‑wallet or a bank. It facilitates Instant SEPA transfer payments between your customers and your business payment account, keeping flows clear and auditable.
Benefits for E‑Commerce Merchants
For online stores, YowPay is designed to plug into your existing checkout and unlock new revenue opportunities while lowering payment costs.
1. Reduce Abandoned Carts
Every e-commerce team knows the pain of abandoned carts. Payment friction – or simply a missing preferred method – is a major cause. YowPay helps you:
- Serve customers who avoid cards– Some shoppers do not like entering card details or do not own a credit card. Instant SEPA transfers give them a secure, familiar alternative.
- Capture sales when card limits are reached– High‑ticket purchases often fail due to credit limits. Bank‑to‑bank payments bypass those card constraints, rescuing sales you might otherwise lose.
- Offer a trusted, bank‑authenticated flow– Because customers approve the payment directly in their bank, the process feels safe and controlled.
Merchants using YowPay report discovering previously invisible lost business from customers who were blocked or discouraged by card‑only checkouts, and seeing those sales converted once Instant SEPA options were added.
2. Lower Transaction Costs
Card processing typically comes with per‑transaction and percentage‑based fees, which add up quickly as volumes grow. Instant SEPA transfers, by design, follow a different cost structure. By steering a portion of payments from cards to SEPA instant, merchants can:
- Reduce dependency on card schemes and the associated fee structure.
- Lower the blended cost per transaction across all payment methods.
- Free up budget to reinvest into marketing, inventory or customer experience.
In merchant feedback, business leaders highlight not only the savings on payment fees but also the transparency and predictability of their costs. One director described YowPay as a "win‑win" because the pricing does not rely on a percentage of every sale, improving margins as revenue grows.
3. Eliminate Chargebacks on SEPA Instant Payments
Chargebacks are a costly and time‑consuming feature of card payments. They require you to gather evidence, respond within strict timelines and often accept revenue losses even when you have delivered the product or service.
With Instant SEPA transfers, the dynamic is different:
- The customer authorises a credit transfer from their bank account rather than granting a card pull.
- Once the transfer is completed, there is no card scheme chargeback process applied to that payment.
- You significantly reduce chargeback‑related operational costs and disputes.
Merchants using YowPay see not only the direct financial benefit of fewer disputes, but also the indirect gains of less time spent on chargeback administration.
4. Improve Cash Flow With Instant Availability
Wait times for card settlement and rolling reserves can slow down your business. YowPay addresses this with:
- Instant crediting of SEPA transfers to your business IBANs.
- No rolling reserves on those inflows via the YowPay payment account.
- Clear separation between SEPA inflows and card settlements when you use dedicated IBANs for each.
For growing e-commerce operations, this faster access to cash can make the difference between seizing an opportunity now or waiting weeks for funds to clear.
Benefits for Physical Retail and Service Businesses
YowPay is not only for online stores. Its mobile point‑of‑sale app makes instant SEPA payments equally practical for in‑person sales.
Mobile Point of Sale: Your Phone Becomes a Terminal
YowPay’s mobile app allows your sales staff to process payments anywhere, using their smartphones instead of traditional POS terminals. In practice, this means you can:
- Replace or complement physical POS terminals with a flexible, app‑based setup.
- Accept payments on the move– in showrooms, at events, on‑site with clients or on delivery.
- Simplify hardware management and maintenance costs.
One SME director reported that deploying YowPay on staff phones and integrating it into their billing system delivered around 30,000 euros of savings per year. For small and medium‑sized enterprises, that level of saving can be reinvested directly into marketing, hiring or equipment.
Consistent Experience Across Channels
Whether a customer buys from your website or pays on site, YowPay lets you offer a consistent, bank transfer based payment experience. That consistency helps to:
- Build trust, because customers see the same brand and flows online and in person.
- Streamline reconciliation, since both in‑store and online SEPA inflows arrive on your business IBANs.
- Simplify staff training, as they learn one system instead of juggling multiple disjointed tools.
Real Merchant Outcomes: What Businesses Are Seeing
Merchant feedback from various sectors highlights tangible improvements after adopting YowPay:
- Recovered sales– Directors mention discovering how many customers they were losing due to card limitations or reluctance to use cards, and then winning those sales back once Instant SEPA options were offered.
- Improved turnover– Businesses that had seen declines linked to changes in card payment rules reported a return to expected revenue levels after integrating YowPay, thanks to both higher acceptance and lower costs.
- Cost reductions– SMEs highlighted substantial annual savings – including the example of roughly 30,000 euros per year – once they reduced their dependency on traditional card terminals and high‑fee card processing.
- Freedom from card scheme constraints– Some merchants emphasised the relief of no longer feeling locked into the “dictatorship of card schemes", as one director put it, thanks to having a strong, independent bank transfer option.
Across these experiences, a common theme emerges: YowPay turns SEPA instant from a technical banking feature into a strategic commercial advantage.
Where YowPay Fits Best: Typical Use Cases
Because it supports both online and in‑person payments, YowPay is relevant for a wide range of European businesses. Typical examples include:
- E‑commerce retailers looking to add Instant SEPA transfers alongside cards at checkout in order to cut cart abandonment and fees.
- Subscription and membership businesses that want predictable, low‑cost inflows via SEPA transfers for recurring payments.
- Professional services and B2B providers (consultants, agencies, trades, wholesalers) who invoice clients and want instant, clearly referenced bank transfers to dedicated IBANs.
- Hospitality and tourism operators that take bookings online and payments on site, and want a consistent payment experience across both environments.
- SMEs optimising cash flow that benefit from immediate fund availability and the absence of rolling reserves.
In each case, the attraction is the same: more ways for customers to pay easily, with less friction and better economics for the merchant.
Implementation and Integration
YowPay is designed to be straightforward to deploy, whether you are an online‑only merchant, a bricks‑and‑mortar retailer or a hybrid business.
Fast Demo to Understand the Fit
YowPay offers focused 20‑minute demos where you can see exactly how the solution would work in your environment. In these sessions, merchants typically explore how YowPay can:
- Help capture more sales by adding SEPA instant as an alternative at checkout.
- Cut transaction fees by shifting part of the volume from high‑cost card payments.
- Improve customer experience with fast, secure payments that feel as easy as paying by card.
E‑Commerce Integration
For online stores, YowPay is built to integrate with existing e‑commerce platforms. Typical steps include:
- Configuring YowPay as an additional payment option in your checkout.
- Mapping payment status updates back to your order management system.
- Testing the three SEPA flows (EPC QR Code, Open Banking / PIS, manual transfer) to ensure a smooth customer journey.
Once live, your customers will see bank transfer options presented clearly at checkout, and successful payments will be marked accordingly in your back office.
On‑Site and Mobile Deployment
For in‑person payments, implementation often involves:
- Installing the YowPay mobile point‑of‑sale app on staff smartphones.
- Connecting it to your billing or invoicing system, with support from YowPay’s team where needed.
- Training staff to generate payment requests, display QR codes and confirm successful transfers.
Merchants report that the on‑site setup can be almost instantaneous, particularly when using phones to replace traditional POS terminals.
Getting Started With YowPay
For European merchants who want to modernise their payment stack, YowPay offers a practical way to unlock the full potential of Instant SEPA transfers without building everything from scratch. In summary, it allows you to:
- Offer customers three friction‑reduced ways to pay by Instant SEPA transfer.
- Use Instant Business SEPA IBANs (BE/FR) to organise B2B and C2B inflows and card settlements.
- Access funds instantly, with no rolling reserves on those SEPA inflows.
- Lower payment costs and reduce your dependence on card schemes.
- Eliminate chargebacks on Instant SEPA payments and cut dispute workloads.
- Secure your flows with 2FA and withdrawals restricted to pre‑approved accounts.
Backed by a regulated European electronic money issuer and based in Luxembourg, YowPay combines regulatory robustness with a merchant‑friendly, conversion‑driven approach. If your goal is to reduce abandoned carts, lower fees and capture more sales across Europe, adding Instant SEPA transfers through YowPay can become a powerful pillar of your payment strategy.
