IDEAL


iDEAL is an e-commerce payment system used for online banking in the Netherlands. Previously controlled by the Dutch e-commerce organization Currence since 2006, the company became owned by the European Payments Initiative from October 2023.
It is an online payment method that enables consumers to pay online through their own bank. In addition to online merchants, other organisations that are not part of the e-commerce market also offer iDEAL.
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History

The system was conceived by the Dutch banks ABN Amro, ING Bank, Postbank N.V. and Rabobank, to develop a single system for online payments that could be used by all banks.
The payment platform was opened to consumers in 2005.
In 2006 the consortium moved the iDEAL brand to the Dutch banking organization Currence. Nine years after claiming to be responsible for 54% of the country's online payments, iDEAL reported having 70% of this market in 2023.
In the same year, the European Payments Initiative acquired iDEAL and Payconiq International, as well as new shareholders, for the upcoming launch of its instant payment solution. iDEAL is to become a European payment account-to-account instant payment scheme and a multi-faceted digital wallet.
EPI will initially enable person-to-person and person-to-professional payments, followed by online and mobile shopping payments and then point-of-sale payments. A comprehensive range of transaction types will be supported, including one-off payments, subscriptions, installments, payments upon delivery and reservations. Additionally, value-added services will be incorporated into the solution over time, including responsible ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ financing, digital identity features and integration of merchant loyalty programmes.
European Payments Initiative has announced that iDEAL will be replaced by its Wero payment service. Wero is launched in Germany, France and Belgium in mid-2024 as a P2P payment solution, but the service will offer e-commerce/m-commerce payments from mid-2025. In October 2025, EPI presented a phased migration plan from iDEAL into Wero, that would span from early 2026 until the end of 2027

Transaction statistics

The number of transfers processed:
YearTransactions
20064.4 million
200714.9 million
200827.8 million
200945.4 million
201068.8 million
201193.9 million
2012117.2 million
2013142.5 million
2014180.2 million
2015222.0 million
2016282.6 million
2017378.1 million
2018523.8 million
2019666.9 million
2020890.3 million
20211.14 billion