On 9 October 2025, a significant innovation in payment transactions will come into force throughout the SEPA area: IBAN name matching (Verification of Payee) will be introduced on a mandatory basis - also in Austria. The aim of this measure is to significantly reduce incorrect transfers and fraudulent payments in future by combining the IBAN with the recipient's name to be matched.
For companies and the self-employed, however, this changeover will require considerable adjustments to their own systems and master data. Unchecked or inconsistent data can lead to payment delays or returns from the autumn onwards.
What exactly will change in payment transactions?
Previously, only the IBANs were checked for online transfers - the recipient's name was not taken into account. In future, before a payment is authorised, the system will check whether the specified recipient name matches the account holder on file with the bank. The bank informs the payer whether:
- Name and IBAN match completely
- there is a partial match („near match“) or
- no match was found
If there is no match, the payment can be withheld or issued with a warning. In such cases, the payer can manually authorise the payment despite the warning, but bears the risk of an error.
What are the risks for companies?
Particularly in the initial phase, an increased susceptibility to errors is to be expected - for example with:
- Discrepancies between invoiced name and official account holder name (e.g. missing additions such as „GmbH“)
- Typing errors or short names in master data records
- differing designations in customer or supplier databases
Experience has already been gained in two European countries: In France, tests resulted in a „no match“ for around 15 % of transactions. In the Netherlands, there was a „close match“ category with 6 %.
What entrepreneurs should do
To avoid payment defaults or queries, companies should take the following measures before October 2025:
- Master data cleansing: Check all relevant account information in your accounting and payroll software - especially names of employees, customers and suppliers.
- Customise document templates: Make sure that the recipient name specified in your invoice templates matches the name stored at your bank exactly. Any discrepancies between the email signature, letterhead and bank master data should also be corrected.
- Coordinate communication internally and externally: Train your accounting and payment team on how to handle any feedback during recipient verification.
Further organisational information
The implementation of IBAN name matching is carried out individually by the banks. The decision as to which provider is chosen for the technical implementation lies with the respective banks. There is no standardised platform. In Austria, PSA Payment Services Austria is coordinating a pilot project with Austrian banks to test the system. In accordance with the EU regulation on real-time payments (Regulation [EU] 2024/886), banks are not permitted to charge any additional fees for recipient verification.
Conclusion
Mandatory IBAN name matching is a sensible measure to increase security in payment transactions - but requires timely organisational and technical preparations on the part of companies.
Act in good time by checking your master data and implementing it correctly within your operational systems and processes. Informing your customers can also be useful. This will help you avoid payment defaults and ensure that payments are processed as smoothly as possible - even after October 2025.
Status: 03/09/2025
Picture: Anna Shvets
