The service will allow businesses to switch to the new pan-European direct debit scheme (SEPA) with minimal change to their existing processes.

SEPA payments will replace existing payments for all euro-area businesses by February next year, and offer benefits such as the ability to have customers across the entire euro area pay by direct debit. A major benefit of the Origix Corporate solution is that businesses can initiate SEPA payments using domestic formats (e.g. DOM80). Origix Corporate includes three modules which cover the migration of domestic mandates into SEPA format, on-going mandate management and the generation of SEPA Direct Debits and SEPA Credit Transfers.

Ivo De Meersman, General Manager, Payments & Cards, KBC: 'Being a front-runner in SEPA payments, KBC has developed various payment solutions to support our clients in their migration from a national direct debit model to a SEPA model. Our dedicated support team and solutions facilitate our clients' transition to direct debits and their success can be illustrated by the substantial number of clients that have already been migrated. However, to fulfil the specific needs of our corporate clients within various size categories from SME to multi-national corporation, we sought an additional dedicated solution. To complete our full-service SEPA offering in response to demand from our corporate clients, we have joined forces with Sentenial. We appreciate the dedication of Sentenial and their end-to-end payment solution. We are therefore looking forward to working with Sentenial and offering Origix Corporate to facilitate the migration process of our corporate clients.'

Sean Fitzgerald, CEO, Sentenial: 'Sentenial is delighted to announce the recent partnership with KBC bank. This Partnership leverages Sentenial's award winning Origix Corporate SEPA payment suite to assist KBC's corporate clients with their SEPA migration. KBC is recognised as a leader within the European payments industry and its initiative in this area shows a great commitment to supporting and assisting its clients, as they embark on their SEPA migration. With the SEPA end date ten months away, it is important that the market understands the implications of not being SEPA compliant and the direct impacts on cash flow and payment transactions - KBC's proactive response coupled with Sentenial's Origix Payment suite and extensive Pan -European SEPA experience, is a positive step towards Belgium's migration to SEPA".

SEPA was set up by the European Commission several years ago to provide a single pan-European payments system which would replace the existing domestic payments systems. The European Parliament has confirmed the 'end-date' deadline of February 2014 by which time domestic payments must be decommissioned and migrated to SEPA.