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Payment Systems Forum

The Payment Systems Forum is an advisory structure of the Banco de Portugal that brings together the main national stakeholders involved in the supply and demand of payment services, including General Government representatives. Its mission is to contribute to the implementation of safe, efficient and innovative payment solutions in the Portuguese market.

The Forum seeks to respond to the challenges of the retail payment market by promoting an atmosphere of cooperation amongst its diverse stakeholders. In particular, it aims to achieve the common positions agreed by its members, as well as to identify strategic themes and priorities, while setting out measures to accomplish them.

The Payment Systems Forum has links to several bodies, both Portuguese, such as the Payment Systems Interbank Commission (Comissão Interbancária para os Sistemas de Pagamentos – CISP) and European, such as the Euro Retail Payments Board (ERPB) and the European Forum for the Innovation in Payments (EFIP).

Established in 2009 with the purpose of working towards migration to the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) in Portugal, the Forum was re-launched in 2018. In 2020 it approved the first National Strategy for Retail Payments, with an implementation horizon until 2022 (2022 Strategy). In 2023 it defined the second National Strategy for Retail Payments, to be accomplished by 2025 (the 2025 Strategy). In the same year, its mandate and composition were also revised.

National Strategies for Retail Payments

National Strategy for Retail Payments 2025

The 2025 Strategy is structured around four strands encompassing 30 lines of action:

Strand I — Outreach and transparency

Strand II — Innovation and efficiency

Strand III — Security and usability

Strand IV — Resilience and sustainability

National Strategy for Retail Payments | 2022 Horizon

The 2022 Strategy was built around four pillars:

•To promote a better-informed society;

•To enhance the benefits of digital transformation;

•To contribute to a regulatory framework that fosters innovation and efficiency;

•To encourage the adoption of more secure payment solutions.

Composition of the Payment Systems Forum

The Forum brings together the main national stakeholders involved in payment services’ supply and demand, including General Government representatives:

Supply of payment services: (i) representatives of banks that are part of CISP; (ii) representatives of banks that are not part of CISP; (iii) the Portuguese Banking Association (Associação Portuguesa de Bancos – APB); (iv) the processing entity appointed by the Banco de Portugal for the Interbank Clearing System (Sistema de Compensação Interbancária – SICOI); (v) representatives of payment institutions; (vi) representatives of electronic money institutions; (vii) the Portuguese association for payment and electronic money institutions (Associação Nacional de Instituições de Pagamento e Moeda Eletrónica – ANIPE); (viii) representatives of international card schemes; and (ix) representatives of credit financial institutions;
Demand for payment services: (i) representatives of associations for consumer protection; (ii) representatives of specialised credit institutions; and (iii) representatives of corporate sector entities whose activity is relevant for the issues dealt with by the Forum, covering different sectors of economic activity;
General Government: (i) representatives of central government bodies whose activity is relevant for the issues dealt with by the Forum; and (ii) representatives of local government (municipalities).

In addition to the Banco de Portugal, who acts as chair, the Forum’s composition is the following:

Composition of the Payment Systems Forum

Plenary meetings (in Portuguese only)

27 February 2023

29 September 2022 – Seminário sobre o Projeto do Euro Digital (reunião extraordinária)

1 July 2022

3 December 2021

27 May 2021

6 November 2020

3 December 2019

7 June 2019

14 September 2018

Other initiatives held by the Forum

Date	Initiative
21 January 2021	Webinar on the National Strategy for Retail Payments \| 2022 Horizon (in Portuguese only)
14 May 2018	1st Payment Systems Forum Conference – A new era in payments?