ECB’s Tumpel-Gugerell on e-invoicing

Gertrude Tumpel-Gugerell, a member of the executive board of the European Central Bank, on Thursday outlined the benefits of Single Euro Payments Area, (Sepa) and the introduction of a Europe-wide e-invoicing system.

In her speech Tumpel-Gugerell expressed support for the European Commission's initiative to promote electronic invoicing in Europe and to the work of its Expert Group on e-Invoicing.

The completion of Sepa will remove all differences between national and cross-border payments, make payments more efficient, and bring cost savings to all companies and citizens in Europe.

"This will allow us to fully reap the benefits of the single currency," said Tumpel-Gugerell, adding that: "When payments for this trade can be made in the same - or even more - efficient and low cost way as national payments, the benefit for the European economy is evident" as the invoicing preceding all these payments could be done electronically and in a harmonised way.

The recent financial crisis has shown that greater integration and globalisation can also spread vulnerabilities more easily as the wider interconnectivity of the system, while good for consumers and companies, increased exposure to the same shocks.

Click here to read the speech