Bulgarian banks to phase in payee checks for euro transfers from 1 December

The Association of Banks in Bulgaria (ABB) said that Bulgarian banks will begin phased implementation of Verification of Payee (VoP) from 1 December. The service checks whether the recipient’s name matches the account holder linked to the supplied IBAN before the customer confirms a payment. All banks and other payment service providers in Bulgaria are due to offer it by 1 January 2027.

VoP will be included in the payment process without a separate request or additional fee. It will apply to ordinary and instant euro credit transfers initiated through mobile or internet banking and at bank branches. The ABB says the rollout is in line with the European requirements in Regulation (EU) 2024/886.

Before confirmation, customers will receive one of four results showing whether the entered details match, partially match, do not match or cannot be checked. The customer will still decide whether to proceed. The ABB says ignoring a mismatch warning risks sending funds to a different recipient, so customers should review the result before authorising a payment.

Four results before payment confirmation

The check will normally take a few seconds and return one of four outcomes:

- Full match: the entered name matches the name of the account holder.
- Partial match: the names are similar but not identical. The customer will see the name associated with the account and can correct the details.
- No match: the entered name does not correspond to the name linked to the IBAN.
- Check unavailable: the service cannot run, for example because of a temporary technical problem or because the recipient’s bank has not yet introduced it.

Where there is a mismatch or no result, the ABB advises customers to verify the details through a known and reliable channel, such as contacting the recipient directly.

The matching process makes the quality of beneficiary data material for both sides of a payment. Customers should replace nicknames, abbreviations and descriptions such as “Mum” or “Rent” in saved payees with the person’s full identity-document name or the company’s official name linked to the account. People and businesses receiving payments should provide the exact IBAN and the name under which the account is held.

The European Payments Council’s scheme work is also developing. Finextra reported on 4 November that the EPC had issued updated VoP matching recommendations covering character handling and the assessment of beneficiary names. Those recommendations are relevant to consistency across payment providers as Bulgaria starts its phased rollout.

The first Bulgarian implementations are due from 1 December 2026, with nationwide availability across banks and other payment providers by 1 January 2027.