API

Abbreviation for Application Programmable Interface, which is a specification of how different computer programmes can communicate with each other. Enables, for example, fintech companies to connect to banks’ systems and collect a customer’s account information from different banks or initiate a payment from the customer’s bank account.

Banknote depot

Physical location for the storage and depositing/withdrawal of banknotes.

Barriers to entry

Obstacles to establishing oneself in a new market. These may, for instance, be financial barriers such as establishment costs, or legal barriers such as licensing requirements.

Basic payment services

Services that allow you to pay bills, withdraw cash and deposit daily takings into your account.

Batch payments

An arrangement whereby several payment transactions are processed as a single group, or batch, at a specific time, rather than being processed individually. This method is particularly useful for predictable payment transactions in large quantities, such as salaries, or supplier payments.

Biometric identification

Method of identifying a person by their physical or physiological characteristics such as a person's face, fingerprints or retina.

Blockchain

A distributed (decentralised) database, that is, a database stored in many copies - one on each node (computer) in a network.

BRICS countries

Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates.

Buy-now-pay-later

BNPL, A payment option offered in e-commerce which is basically a credit, i.e. the option of purchasing a good and paying for it afterwards. Usually the consumer does not pay any interest or fees as long as they pay on time.

Card acquirer

A financial company that processes card payments on behalf of businesses by paying out funds based on transactions. The card acquirer enables companies to accept card payments from card issuers within a card scheme.

Card company

The legal entity that owns the regulatory framework and product name of a card service (e.g. Visa and Mastercard).

Card issuer

A financial institution that issues debit and credit cards, i.e. where the cardholder’s account is held.

Card system

A set of regulations, payment procedures, payment instruments and related infrastructure for card payments.

Cash register

A cash register, cash terminal, cash system or similar equipment for recording the sale of goods and services against payment by cash or card.

Cash services

Cash services consist of withdrawals, deposits and cash payment services such as over-the-counter bill payments.

Cash-in-transit company

A company that transports cash, particularly to banks and the trade sector. They may also carry out the counting, sorting and authentication of cash at so-called counting centres.

Central bank digital currencies

Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC). Digital money created by central banks. ‘Retail CBDC’ is intended for the public, while ‘wholesale CBDC’ is intended for financial institutions.

Central bank money

Money issued by a central bank. Swedish central bank money is Swedish kronor in the form of banknotes and coins as well as money in accounts in the Riksbank's settlement system, RIX.

Central counterparties

A central counterparty goes in as seller to all buyers and buyer to all sellers to take on the counterparty risk that arises when trading in securities. In addition to counterparty risks, the central counterparty also clears securities transactions.

Clearing

Compilation and processing of payment instructions. Many transactions are generally handled at the same time (a so-called batch), which means that they can sometimes be offset against one another.

Clearing organisation

A company authorised by the supervisory authority (in Sweden, Finansinspektionen) to carry out clearing. In Sweden, Bankgirot is authorised to carry out clearing of retail payments.

Cognitive accessibility

Factors that influence how a person can understand a service or how information should be interpreted.

Conditional payments

A payment that is only made if a specific condition is met.

Credit card

A card that allows the cardholder to obtain credit. The card allows the holder to make payments up to a certain total maximum amount during a certain period. Payments are aggregated and billed to the cardholder at the end of the period, but the cardholder does not have to pay the full amount billed on the payment date. The part that the cardholder chooses not to pay is rolled over to the next period as a loan (credit) and usually the person has to pay interest.

Cryptocurrency

Digital currencies created in the private sector that are not backed by a government or central bank. Central banks generally refer to cryptocurrencies as crypto-assets because they do not usually fulfil the basic functions of money.

Dataclearing

The Swedish Bankers' Association’s transfer system for payments between accounts in different banks and credit market companies. Bankgirot is responsible for operating Dataclearing.

Debit card

A card connected to the cardholder's account at a bank where the amount paid is debited directly when a payment is made. Debit cards are also called bank cards in Sweden.

Deposits

Money that individuals, for example, have deposited in a bank account. Deposits constitute an important part of the banks’ funding.

Direct debit

A pre-authorised transfer from the paying party's account to the recipient's account. The transfer is initiated by the recipient.

Distributed ledger

Process to validate, record and transmit inflation about, for example, a payment in a decentralised network.

E-commerce

The purchase of goods or services online.

Economic cost

The time and other resources used for payments in this case that could have been used for other purposes and thus represent costs to society.

Economies of scale

Economic term for production in which the average cost decreases as production increases. Economies of scale normally occur when production is associated with large fixed costs.

E-invoice

An invoice that is presented to the payee in their online bank and makes it easier for the customer to pay.

E-invoice

An invoice that is presented to the payee in their online bank and makes it easier for the customer to pay.

E-krona

A central bank digital currency that may be issued by the Riksbank and that would be available to the public (a so-called ‘retail CBDC’). The Riksbank has not taken any decision on issuing an e-krona.

Electronic money

An electronically stored monetary value that is used to make payments. E-money is issued by electronic money institutions or companies registered as electronic money issuers. Like private bank money, electronic money represents a claim on the issuer (private institution).

Electronic money institution

A Swedish limited liability company or economic association authorised under the Payment Services Act to issue e-money. It can also be a legal entity within the EU/EEA that is authorised under national law to issue e-money.

E-Money Directive

The Electronic Money (e-money) Directive is a European directive that regulates, inter alia, the business activities of EU/EEA e-money institutions (e-money institutions) and other e-money issuers.

Essential goods

Essential goods include medicines, food and fuel.

EU Directive

Legislation under EU law that determines the objectives to be achieved by Member States. An EU directive is legally binding, but Member States are free to decide how to transpose it into national law. In Sweden, the directives are implemented through Swedish legislation.

EU Regulation

Legislation under EU law that is directly binding on Member States without having to be transposed into Swedish law.

EU/EEA

European Union and European Economic Area. The European Economic Area (EEA) is based on an agreement between all EU Member States plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, which mainly concerns free trade and legislative alignment. Switzerland is not part of the EEA, but has a similar agreement with the EU.

Finality Directive

Directive 1998/26/EC of the European Parliament and the European Council concerning payment and securities settlement systems. Aims to prevent or minimise legal risks in settlement in the financial markets. The Directive ensures that transactions are carried out in the order in which they were submitted to the system and also that they are finally settled, regardless of whether a participant has become insolvent in the meantime. Among other things, the Directive governs which participants can access designated settlement systems including central banks’ RTGS systems, such as RIX in Sweden. The Directive has been implemented into Swedish law primarily through the Act on Systems for the Settlement of Obligations on the Financial Market (1999:1309).

Financial infrastructure

The systems that, among other things, enable financial flows between different agents. The financial infrastructure also includes the regulations and procedures that govern the use of these systems.

FinTech

A collective term for innovative companies working in financial technology. This type of company provides or enables financial services, for example by acting as an intermediary in some part of the payment chain and by creating new services. They may also simplify or otherwise improve ways of making payments.

G20 countries

An informal association of nineteen countries and the European Union (EU) and African Union.

Hawala intermediaries

Money intermediaries that together form a large network that acts as an alternative value transfer system, including for cross-border payments.

Heightened state of alert

A level of preparedness that the government can decide on to strengthen Sweden’s defence capabilities. This can happen, for example, in the case of wars and conflicts in our vicinity, or if the international situation seriously affects our country or threatens our security and independence.

Identity data

Data confirming the user’s identity. In the case of a payment, this may include the account or card number, PIN code or the personal code for signing an e-ID.

Initiation

Starting a payment process. Initiating a payment often involves verifying the identity of the person initiating the payment, for example by a PIN or Bank ID. It is then checked whether the person is authorised to initiate the payment and whether there are sufficient funds in the account to make the payment.

Instant payments

A payment where the recipient’s account receives the payment almost at the same time as the sender makes the payment. Swish is currently the only service offering instant payments in Sweden, but RIX-INST will enable banks and other payment service providers to offer more types of service where the payment is made instantly.

Internet banking

A service provided by banks that allows their customers to carry out banking transactions online.

ISO 20022

A new standard for payment orders that can help make cross-border payments faster, more efficient and more transparent.

Know your customer

Statutory requirement for companies to have good knowledge of their customers and their business activities. The aim is to make difficult and prevent the use of such activities for money laundering or terrorist financing.

Large-value payment

A payment, usually of very high value, made mainly between banks or other financial market participants and usually requiring rapid settlement.

Legal tender

Banknotes and coins (cash) issued by the Riksbank are legal tender. Public institutions are generally obliged to accept cash as payment for fees, but there are several exceptions. There is no contractual obligation for cash between individuals or between traders and consumers. As a result, many business operators choose to opt out of this obligation.

List prices

The official price displayed for a service or product, for example on a company's website.

LMA card

Proof of being an asylum seeker in Sweden. LMA refers to the law on the reception of asylum seekers.

Manual cash services

The opportunity to receive help paying bills and depositing or withdrawing cash over the counter at a bank branch, for example.

Money laundering

When someone tries to make money obtained illegally appear to be legally earned.

Multilateral platform

A system for the clearing and/or settlement of cross-border payments in one or more currencies.

Network effects

When the benefits of a product or service increase with the number of users. For example, a payment service is usually more attractive the more sellers that accept payments through the service.

Offline payment

When a payment is executed despite the unavailability of at least one actor involved in the payment.

Online card

A card that only works if all agents in the card network can communicate with each other to perform the necessary checks.

Open banking

When third-party service providers access data from the customer's bank in order to provide different types of financial services, such as initiating a payment from the customer's bank account.

P27

Nordic initiative to create a joint clearing platform for national and cross-border payments in Nordic currencies and euros. The project is being run by a number of the Nordic area’s largest banks.

Payment

The transfer of money or value in another form from one party to another.

Payment infrastructure

The digital systems that, among other things, enable financial flows and interoperability between different actors, such as banks. The payment infrastructure also includes the regulations and procedures governing the use of the systems.

Payment institution

A Swedish limited liability company or economic association authorised under the Payment Services Act to provide payment services. This may also be a legal entity domiciled in another EU/EEA country that, under that country’s legislation, is authorised to provide payment services.

Payment instrument

The instrument or procedure used to initiate a payment, such as a card.

Payment process

All the steps a payment has to go through to be executed, such as initiation, clearing and settlement.

Payment service

A service offered by a payment service provider to its customers to enable them to make payments, for example. See also payment service provider.

Payment service provider

A collective term for those who offer payment services, including banks, credit market companies, payment institutions, registered payment service providers, institutions for electronic money and the foreign equivalents of these categories that provide payment services in Sweden.

Payment Services Directive

Payment Services Directive (Directive (EU) 2015/2366 on payment services in the internal market, PSD2): The Payment Services Directive is a European directive that regulates payment services and payment service providers within the EU/EEA. It has been implemented into Swedish law by the Payment Services Act (2010:751).

Peacetime crisis situation

An event in peacetime that threatens fundamental functions and values of society, such as electricity supply, human health or freedom. It may be that a large number of people are affected or that an event has such major consequences that society does not function properly.

PIN

PIN (Personal identification number). A personal number that must be kept secret and that allows users to identify themselves, for example when making a purchase by card.

Postal giro

A service that allows you to pay bills by post, for example.

provide cash services

Pursuant to Chapter 9 of the Payment Services Act, credit institutions and branches of foreign credit institutions that provide payment accounts and have more than SEK 70 billion in deposits from the general public must provide cash withdrawal and facilities to deposit daily takings to a satisfactory extent throughout the country.

PSD2

PSD2 (revised EU Payment Services Directive). PSD2 has replaced the PSD (Payment Services Directive). The aim of the Directive is to develop the market for electronic payments and create better conditions for secure and efficient payments. PSD2 has been incorporated into Swedish law through amendments to the Payment Services Act. This extended the scope of the Act so that it now also covers so-called third-party providers of payment services.

Recurring card payments

Recurring card payments are used, for example, to pay for various types of subscription services such as streaming services and newspaper subscriptions, where consumers register their card once and the payment is then deducted at a certain interval, often monthly.

Remittance

Usually refers to money sent by migrants to family and friends in another country.

Reservation purchase

When buying fuel at a petrol station, for example, a fixed amount is reserved from the card used to pay, before refuelling can start. A standard amount may appear on your online banking statement a few minutes after refuelling, but is later adjusted to the actual amount you have refuelled.

Retail payment

A collective name for payment of smaller value that are usually made between private individuals, companies and authorities.

RIX

The Riksbank’s central payment system that processes payments to and from the banks’ accounts with the Riksbank. RIX consists of two services: RIX-RTGS (for large-value payments and aggregated payments) and RIX-INST (for individual instant payments).

RIX-INST

The Riksbank’s instant payment service, which was launched in May 2022 and is part of the RIX system.

RIX-RTGS

The Riksbank’s central payment system that handles large-value payments to and from the banks’ accounts with the Riksbank.

Securities settlement

The exchange of money and securities between buyers and sellers of securities.

SEPA

A common euro payment area consisting of the whole EEA. The basic principle is that within the SEPA there should be no borders when making a euro payment; it should be no more complicated or costly to make a payment from Berlin to Hamburg than from Berlin to Paris.

Settlement

When a transaction is finally executed, it has been settled. For payments within a bank, this is when the transfer is made between accounts. For payments between banks, settlement is when the money has reached the receiving bank. In the case of a securities transaction, settlement takes place when the security or the payment for it reaches the recipient's account.

Settlement system

The technical system used to initiate, implement and record a payment, known as settlement.

Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) payments

Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) payments: A common European standard for payments in euro.

Social cost

The value of the negative benefits that an activity or measure generates for society as a whole.

Social engineering

The use of various psychological techniques and methods to manipulate people into performing various actions.

Spoofing

A type of fraud where fraudsters call and use the real phone numbers of banks, authorities and organisations.

Stablecoin

A form of crypto-asset whose value is usually linked to the value of other assets, such as one or more national currencies or other financial assets. Stablecoins have mainly been used as a bridge between national currencies and investments in other cryptocurrencies.

Strong customer authentication

A customer must be able to identify themselves with at least two of the following elements when making digital payments or logging in to payment accounts: knowledge (something that only the user knows, such as a password or PIN) possession (something that only the user has, such as a card or phone) or a unique characteristic (something that is unique to the user, such as a fingerprint). The requirement for strong customer authentication is part of the regulations in the Payment Services Act (2010:751).

SWIFT

A global network for financial messages that complies with certain standards. Central banks, banks and financial infrastructures use the SWIFT network and its format and standard to execute payments.

Swish

A payment service that allows you to send and receive money in your bank account via your mobile phone. To send money by Swish to others, both the payer and the recipient need to be connected to the service provided by their banks.

T2

Eurosystem’s platform for settling wholesale payments.

T2S

Eurosystem’s platform for settling security transactions.

TIPS

TIPS (Target Instant Payment Settlement): The Eurosystem’s platform for instant payments that the Riksbank will use to offer instant payments through RIX-INST.

Trust accounts

An account held by a company on behalf of a customer for the purpose of receiving and holding money, known as accounting funds, for someone else. The account is used to separate a customer's money from the company's own funds. Used, for example, by some payment service providers and real estate agents.

Unauthorised transaction

A transaction carried out without the consent of the account holder or any other person authorised under the account agreement to use the payment instrument.

Vulnerable areas

Defined by the police as geographically defined places of low economic status where criminals have an impact on the local community. These areas usually have a higher proportion of population with foreign background than the national average.

wCBDC

Wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) is money issued by a central bank in digital form to be used exclusively by central banks, commercial banks or other financial institutions to settle transactions involving tokenised assets.

Wholesale payment

A payment, usually at a very high value, mainly made between banks or other participants in the financial market, which normally requires rapid settlement.