The head of digital identity at Visa has described the upcoming EU Digital Identity Wallet (eID) is as a “gamechanger” for payments and banking.

Speaking at Money 2020 in Amsterdam on Wednesday, Marie Austenaa described the move as a “present on a silver plate” for the sector, with the eID Wallet acting as a crucial new tool for regulatory compliant account opening.

The eID Wallet is a planned digital ID that can be used to authenticate and verify people for payments and banking.

By 2026, each EU member state will need to deliver at least one version of the Wallet. The IDs are expected to be fully operational by 2027, with service providers mandated to accept them during the same year.

Austenaa explained that the ID will make it much easier to open a bank account in another country and expand across borders.

The head of digital identity said the upcoming ID will be used as an authentication credential in a person’s wallet, where a bank can rely on it rather than their banking app, while it can be presented to a merchant to perform authentication in “a way that everyone can trust”.

She described it as an opportunity to separate the identity process from banks. The identification process will be done by another entity, she said, but proof will still be shared with the financial institution.

“One of the exciting things is that there are certain mandatory requirements around the wallet, it must be used to authenticate a payment transaction, it’s written there, that’s at least the view we have taken," explained the Visa executive. "That sets certain obligations of the banks, if this really is happening – which I think it is – by 2027 we need to see some changes in the way payment is being authenticated.”

Austenaa added that the eID would provide opportunities in other areas such as verification of IBAN, or proof of income, but she said that this is “going to take time”.

“[It is an] opportunity for the banks, having a trusted digital identity that is fully digital with a great user experience, the member states taking responsibility for the identity itself, that’s kind of cool," she continued, adding that the ID will create economic wealth all around the EU, with further opportunities around driving trust and innovation, and reducing fraud.

She did however highlight concerns about the timeline for the rollout.

"2027 is like tomorrow if you work in a bank," she told the audience. "I am concerned about the timelines."

She continued: "We have done implementation using the wallet for authentication for a live payment transaction, it works. You need to tweak your access control server (ACS); that in itself is a challenge. We were lucky we had a bank with a super flexible team around ACS. So what worries me is the time it is going to take, especially if the banks are going to argue about why, and if and how it's good enough instead of [looking at it as] an opportunity."

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