Fast Forward Foundation presents the report “Leveraging Modern Payment Techniques to Enhance Integrated Welfare Solutions”
The research provides a new methodology for defining a clear and comparable picture of payment systems linked to specific welfare areas, identifying both critical issues and best practices
Today, at the Salone dei Pagamenti 2024, a workshop is being held that draws inspiration from the research, with a debate between international experts on the future of European welfare in the era of digital payments
Milan, November 28, 2024 – Fast Forward Foundation – a philanthropic entity committed to the sustainable and inclusive transformation of welfare systems – today publishes, in English, the study entitled “Leveraging Modern Payment Techniques to Enhance Integrated Welfare Solutions.”
This research collects and compares, for the first time, data on digital-payment systems and welfare infrastructures (with a focus on health, pensions and social protection) across nine EU countries: Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain. The report develops a new methodology that makes it possible to analyze the payment systems associated with the welfare sectors (Welfare Sector Payments – WSPs ) at national and regional level, and to carry out comparative studies between countries, in order both to highlight best practices and/or critical issues and to generate tangible responses.
Biagio Bossone, Lead Author of the Research, states: “This report represents an important effort to explore the role of digital-payment systems within welfare frameworks. By providing a methodology for assessing payment systems and proposing adaptable infrastructures, it offers governments, organizations, and payment–sector operators a practical tool to enhance efficiency and inclusivity in delivering welfare services.”
Barbara Canale, Program Manager of Fast Forward Foundation, comments: “Our mission is to make sure that every individual, regardless of their social, economic, geographical or digital status, can access integrated, simplified, secure, and immediate welfare systems. Designing unified digital-payment systems for welfare services is a necessary step to overcome fragmentation and build a more efficient system – one that is able to improve the wellbeing of individuals, and of the community they live in.”
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The research constitutes the starting point for the workshop “Digital Payments: Accelerating Solutions for Integrated Welfare,” being held today by BFF Banking Group in collaboration with Fast Forward Foundation at the Salone dei Pagamenti 2024, with a panel of international experts composed of: Silvia Attanasio, Head of the ABI Innovation Office; Diederik Bruggink, Head of Payments, Digital Finance and Innovation WSBI-ESBG; Barbara Canale, Program Manager of Fast Forward Foundation; Matteo Rizzi, entrepreneur, innovator and author of “Fintech Revolution” and “Talents & Rebels”; Camilla Venter, Co-author of the research; and Giuseppe Virgone, CEO of HYPE.
The research is fully available here
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Key Highlights
How does the methodology developed by the research differ?
The new methodology is designed to gather quantitative and qualitative data from official reports, financial statements, and user surveys, offering insights for policymakers and stakeholders. It covers 15 Key Areas, including the legal and regulatory framework, payment systems, digitalization, financial inclusion, cost efficiency, and user protection, among others.
For each key area, the methodology defines the objectives of the assessment, explains its importance, specifies the outcomes that the pursuit of those objectives would make it possible to achieve, and provides practical guidance to the assessors through the formulation of targeted questions aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of the systems and identifying their relevant issues. The proposed approach enables assessors to tailor their methodology to specific contexts, providing a deeper understanding of the associated strengths and challenges.
What critical issues does the report identify?
WSP systems often operate within infrastructures that are not interoperable, which complicate the delivery of payments and do not meet the needs of a digitally connected society. As a result, users often experience delays, high costs and limited access to financial services, particularly in countries where cash payments continue to play an important role.
The study identifies significant inefficiencies in current systems, in particular the absence of uniform policies for integrating social security payments with fast- and digital-payment systems.
Which best practices emerge?
The research shows the positive positioning of Spain and France in the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI). Spain ranks highest among the countries in question, in 7th place for digital payments and 5th for digital public services, followed by France (12th and 15th, respectively). The figure for adults making or receiving digital payments is also significant, being representative of the level of financial inclusion. For France, this figure is 98%, and for Spain it is 97.2%.
What solutions does the research propose?
The report proposes the development of an integrated welfare-sector payments architecture (IWSPA) designed to simplify the delivery of WSPs by creating a coherent system that connects payees, taxpayers, government agencies and payment service providers (PSPs).
By integrating multiple channels, tools, and vendors, IWSPA ensures that payments – both made and received – are easy-to-use, convenient, and accessible.
What is unique about IWSPA?
IWSPA seeks to streamline all payment flows for pensions, social assistance and health, within a unified system. It also encourages financial empowerment among the most-vulnerable, and least-banked, segments of the population, addressing existing inefficiencies in social-care systems – many of which operate on fragmented and non-interoperable platforms – and centralizing processes within a single digital infrastructure.
How does IWSPA work?
IWSPA manages both recurring and non-recurring payments, ensures secure identification and authentication processes, and offers flexible access options, both through digital and traditional channels. The monitoring and reconciliation of payments are integral to its operation, and are carried out with a view to ensuring accuracy and minimizing the risk of fraud or delays.
The integrated structure also simplifies the administrative burden on governments and facilitates smoother coordination between various stakeholders, including PSPs and central banks. Ultimately, IWSPA is built on a robust infrastructure that supports efficient payment cycles and prioritizes user convenience. Its design fosters government oversight while promoting innovation, making it a future-oriented solution for modernizing WSP systems and services.