Sofort

Sofortüberweisung, operated by Sofort GmbH and part of the Swedish Klarna group since 2014, offers an online banking-based payment solution for cashless transactions on the web.

Established in 2005, the platform requires customers to provide their online banking access details for transaction verification, which includes assessing account balances, overdraft limits, recent sales, and pending transfers or direct debits.

Retailers typically receive payment confirmations within minutes, though verification may take up to five days in some instances. Initially utilizing web scraping techniques, Sofortüberweisung now leverages banks’ open banking infrastructure regulated under PSD2, facilitating payment initiation by third-party providers.

Since 2019, operating as an account information and payment initiation service under BaFin’s supervision, Sofort offers a familiar, secure, and convenient payment method for European customers, trusted by 85 million users, allowing them to make direct payments from their bank accounts without needing a new account, ensuring their banking details remain protected during online transactions.

This payment method could be relevant for your business if you sell to clients in the following countries or regions:

The Netherlands, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Spain