How CBI Is Preparing Italian Banks for Payment Fraud Prevention
•March 8, 2026
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Why It Matters
The rollout ensures Italian banks meet regulatory deadlines while dramatically reducing payment‑fraud risk, and establishes CBI as a cornerstone of Europe’s interoperable digital‑payments infrastructure.
Key Takeaways
- •CBI offers standardized, interoperable verification of payment solution.
- •Solution leverages existing network of 400 PSPs for rapid scaling.
- •Real-time IBAN name matching improves fraud detection accuracy.
- •Request‑to‑Pay integrates with Pagopa, enhancing digital collection for merchants.
- •CBI will pilot cross‑border VOP services with major European banks.
Summary
The interview with Pilaf Fragala, CBI’s chief commercial officer, focuses on how the fintech‑focused benefit corporation is helping Italian banks meet the October deadline for mandatory verification of payment (VOP) to curb payment fraud.
Fragala explains that CBI’s VOP solution provides a standardized, interoperable platform built on its existing CBI‑Globe network of more than 400 payment service providers. The architecture delivers real‑time IBAN‑name matching with exact, partial and no‑match outcomes, and its modular API‑driven design ensures scalability and operational excellence across Italy and, through recent EU agreements, across the UK and other European markets.
CBI is already piloting the solution with a major European banking group, slated to go live in October, and has invited other RTP service providers to join a cross‑border pilot. The company also integrates request‑to‑pay functionality with Italy’s Pagopa system and its C‑Bill service, enabling merchants in utilities, insurance and e‑commerce to receive instant, verifiable payment requests.
By delivering a ready‑to‑use compliance tool and expanding into request‑to‑pay, CBI not only helps banks avoid regulatory penalties but also strengthens fraud defenses and improves the payment experience for consumers and merchants, positioning the firm as a pivotal infrastructure player in the evolving European digital‑payments landscape.
Original Description
How are banks preparing for mandatory Verification of Payee (VoP) in Europe?
At Sibos 2025, Pilar Fragalà, Chief Commercial Officer at CBI, explains how the Italian banking ecosystem is implementing Verification of Payee to strengthen payment security and reduce fraud.
With regulatory deadlines approaching, banks and payment service providers are accelerating adoption of VoP solutions that verify IBAN and account holder names before payments are executed. CBI plays a central role in this transition, providing an interoperable infrastructure used by more than 400 financial institutions.
CBI’s platform enables real-time IBAN and name matching, delivering clear responses such as exact match, partial match, or no match. This helps prevent misdirected payments and strengthens fraud protection while maintaining a seamless user experience for customers and businesses.
The solution is designed with plug-and-play architecture, API-driven integration, and centralized governance, allowing banks to implement Verification of Payee without disrupting existing payment operations.
Beyond compliance, CBI is expanding its ecosystem with Request-to-Pay (RTP) services that allow businesses to send structured payment requests directly through banking apps. These capabilities are especially valuable for sectors such as utilities, insurance, and e-commerce where reconciliation and payment certainty are critical.
By combining VoP, instant payments infrastructure, and request-to-pay capabilities, CBI is helping financial institutions strengthen payment security while enabling more efficient digital payment experiences across Europe.
Explore the complete conversation with CBI on Verification of Payee, instant payments regulation, and the future of secure digital payments in Europe :
@SibosTV @CBIScpa
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