STEP2 Direct Debit Services Grow Through Europe's Instant Payment Transition

STEP2's SDD Core service averaged 47.3 million daily transactions in April 2026. This represents a 2.6 percent increase from 46.1 million in April 2025. SDD B2B averaged 420,000 daily transactions in April 2026. The service's daily value average of €4.4 billion was the highest monthly figure on record. STEP2 SCT daily volumes fell 5.5 percent to 26.8 million over the same period.

SCT Inst offers a direct substitute for batch credit transfers, particularly for retail and person-to-person flows. No equivalent instant scheme exists for SEPA direct debits. The recurring mandate-based collection model relies on creditor-initiated pull payments that do not translate into real-time push payment architectures.

ECB payment statistics for the first half of 2025 recorded 11.3 billion direct debit transactions in the euro area. Volume grew 2.3 percent year-on-year. Value increased 6.2 percent to €5.6 trillion. Electronic mandates accounted for 12 percent of SDD processing volume, with the remaining 88 percent processed through paper-based workflows.