The field of corporate payments, i.e. those transactions that typically involve inter-company payments related to intermediate stages of production and trade, has been undergoing profound transformation in recent years.

The corporate sector has been seeking to reap thebenefits brought by the remarkable progress in the development of safe and efficient paymentand settlement infrastructures worldwide, as well as the new transactional possibilities providedby advances in information and communication technologies. Cheaper, faster and safer corporatepayments systems would open up vast opportunities for increasing efficiency at all levels ofe conomic activity around the world, including that such gains derive in more convenient servicesand options for customers and more competitive consumer prices.