ELV is an electronic direct debit system in Germany. Launched in the 1980s by a group of merchants, it accounted for 5.8% of the country’s non-cash transaction volume in 2019.
It is a popular payment solution in Germany for both in-store and online payments and is an alternative payment option for customers who do not like using credit cards online to pay for products or services.
In-store ELV payments are carried out at POS terminals using debit cards. The customer’s bank card details (including card number and expiry date) are captured by the POS terminal, and a collection authorization mandate is generated. This mandate needs to be signed by the customer, allowing merchants to collect funds from the customer’s bank account in the form of a direct debit. The system avoids the intervention of any card scheme networks for payment processing, thus allowing merchants to accept payments at lower costs.
ELV can also be used as a payment option by e-retailers. Payments are not authorized by issuing banks and merchants have to bear the risk of defaults.
ELV payments are accepted by most banks in Germany, as well as by a number of payment service providers including Worldpay from FIS, Adyen, Computop, ALTAPAY, Novalnet, Dalenys, emerchantpay, and Nuvei.
The report provides information and insights into ELV including:
Scope
Reasons to Buy
It is a popular payment solution in Germany for both in-store and online payments and is an alternative payment option for customers who do not like using credit cards online to pay for products or services.
In-store ELV payments are carried out at POS terminals using debit cards. The customer’s bank card details (including card number and expiry date) are captured by the POS terminal, and a collection authorization mandate is generated. This mandate needs to be signed by the customer, allowing merchants to collect funds from the customer’s bank account in the form of a direct debit. The system avoids the intervention of any card scheme networks for payment processing, thus allowing merchants to accept payments at lower costs.
ELV can also be used as a payment option by e-retailers. Payments are not authorized by issuing banks and merchants have to bear the risk of defaults.
ELV payments are accepted by most banks in Germany, as well as by a number of payment service providers including Worldpay from FIS, Adyen, Computop, ALTAPAY, Novalnet, Dalenys, emerchantpay, and Nuvei.
The report provides information and insights into ELV including:
- Detailed insight into its business
- Comprehensive coverage of its products and services
- Comparative assessment with key alternative payment solutions
- Information on its performance highlights
Scope
- ELV is one of the most popular retail payment instruments in Germany launched in 1980s.
- To adopt a new framework promoting standardization and defining interfaces, the ELV Forum was formed in 2009.
- To align with the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) framework, the traditional ELV direct debit was migrated to SEPA ELV Direct Debit in January 2016.
- ELV Forum adopted the latest EuroELV version 4.3 specification in February 2021, which support ELV payments via contactless cards.
Reasons to Buy
- Gain insights into ELV's business operations and key events.
- Gain insights into its product portfolio.
- Assess the competitive dynamics in the alternative payments industry by comparing its performance against competitors.
Table of Contents
- Overview
- Key Facts
- Benchmarking
- Performance Highlights
- Products and Services
- Appendix
Companies Mentioned (Partial List)
A selection of companies mentioned in this report includes, but is not limited to:
- ELV
- Giropay
