One of the premier software vendors for SEPA that has emerged is ACI, who have also been busy in their corporate activity by aggressively acquiring other software vendors, which complement their system and business development strategy. By integrating their new products they are arguably building the most comprehensive system solution suite for the payments industry available in the market today.

ACI has already answered many of the industry’s technical functionality problems for SEPA, but are still waiting with other vendors for the industry to determine what other specifications will be made, to take opportunities offered by SEPA. This industry vacuum will eventually be filled but in the meantime there is much debate within banking payments circles on how to take advantage of the new SEPA conditions without losing any of the prominence that they hold today.

ACI already has a significant customer base of payment banks where their systems are integral to the efficient running of today’s payment operations. They are not only ideally situated to take advantage of SEPA but beyond the January implementation to a post SEPA world, which is surely going to include industry restructuring on a Pan European scale and a plethora of new services offered to the banks corporate customers.

ACI will succeed and it’s only in question of the size of their eventual success. The acquisition trail has put ACI in an even better position to be one of the most successful software vendors as SEPA becomes a milestone on the way to a very different industry than we see today.

ACI with a reinforced systems capability are providing the systems functionality required within large banking institutions able to process large volumes of payment instructions or those looking to move out of this business by giving up under new outsourcing contracts. Both types of bank will require modern systems with flexible functionality to support their new business models and ACI are one of the few alternatives to maintaining archaic legacy banking systems.

It is clear that SEPA compliance in January 2008 is only a mild beginning of a massive evolutionary change within the European payments industry. All industry changes on this scale are fraught with protectionism and doubt, but ultimately if the change is for the good, born from sound business principles and logic the resulting end game is never in doubt.

ACI’s technology solutions are for the banking payments industry but it should not be forgotten that the banks corporate customers also have technology requirements for SEPA. Indeed the success of SEPA may be measured more in the battle to win usage by their corporate customers. A vendor and bank liaison to install within corporate customers looks a “win win” situation for both.

The issues that the industry find so hard to find answers for are not one of new systems development, but more to do with gaining agreements between customers and banks for new prices, new services, and only then looking at the best technology solution. There is a clear legacy mindset that obstructs these commercial decisions before we get to the actual legacy systems problem. For each type of legacy, the systems vendor can assist with their knowledge and products, which should be suitable for banking or corporate environments.

ACI are industry experts in a number of ways. They have deep understanding of the existing payments system, a vision of the future, post SEPA and have advanced technical solutions already available to meet future banking needs.

Paul Styles of ACI says “SEPA should not be seen as an end in itself, but merely as a stage on a much longer journey. It offers banks an opportunity to map out their entire payments infrastructures in a component model, and move towards a situation whereby all payments functions are controlled by a single system based on flexible, open technology. The winners in this process will be those banks that realise that these changes can lead to transformational results.”

ACI is a visionary in the payments industry and it’s worth all banks and corporates concerned with SEPA opening their minds and ditching their legacy thinking to follow a similar approach to change and solution design.

If the banks and the corporates can leave legacy in the past, the worries and concerns of today’s SEPA problems can be resolved faster. The future is where the payments world looks more efficient and cost effective for banks and their customers, which in global terms will elevate the European payments industry to become a real powerhouse, attracting more liquidity from world-class corporates and will produce high quality banking services.