Automatia: Launching Finland's first real-time mobile payment platform

Launching Finland's first mobile payment solution

The banking system has traditionally involved a closed architecture, meaning that advancements were slow and end-user choices limited. While Swish was breaking ground in Sweden, enabling person-to-person (P2P) payments with nothing more than a mobile phone number, Finland was lagging behind. How could Tieto and Automatia join forces to propel the Finnish payment system into the future?

As well as facing the challenge of carving out a new niche in the payment world, we were acutely aware of the need of providing a safe, secure, authenticated service. One adhering to the EU Payment Services Directive PSD 2, which safeguards consumer protection and stipulates the obligations of payment providers. Mobile payments certainly facilitate payments, but they can also place users' money and personal data at risk.

Siirto at your service

In March 2017, Siirto hit the Finnish scene. From one day to the next, consumers could make P2P payments from their mobiles, with funds transferred between banks in real-time. No more off hours and unavailable networks. Siirto rewrote the payment solution rulebook on Finnish soil.

What had previously been a closed architecture in the nationwide banking system transformed into a network of open application programming interfaces (APIs), encouraging shared knowledge and a more agile space for change. End consumers were offered a new world of payment possibilities, as Siirto provided a platform for a whole host of fresh services. By encouraging the entire financial ecosystem – banks, retailer and service providers – to work together under a unified umbrella, the result was a seamless service benefitting society at large.

As an easy-to-use, consumer-friendly platform, Siirto allows any licensed payment service provider to offer customers a solution through a single application, regardless of the bank or payment initiation service provider (PISP) involved.

Teamwork is the best work

Faced with the task of elevating payments to a whole new level, we embarked on an ecosystem collaboration. Coming together with Automatia and its partner banks, we pooled our strengths and resources. The need was there, the market was there, the know-how was there. We now had to crack the nut of how to combine them in the most efficient, effective, user-friendly manner.

First, we moved from a closed architecture to a system of open APIs, fostering a creative, communicative environment for development. Stagnancy and secrecy were replaced by swift collaboration and access to answers, on the go and on our toes. We facilitated discussions and encouraged an open, seamless work flow.

Secondly, numerous projects over the years in a variety of countries had taught us the importance of drafting legal regulations and requirements. We prioritised this task throughout the project. Through a series of conversations, we fine-tuned a list of guidelines for how future players would connect to Siirto, and how the central infrastructure would run.

Our extensive experience in building payment solutions gave us invaluable insight, and Automatia's extensive network of payment players provided the platform. Together, we took a vision of mobile real-time payments and turned it into a real-world reality.