Wincor Nixdorf is moving toward the new European standard EPAS (Electronic Protocols Application Software), which is now available as part of the introduction of SEPA for integrating cashless payment solutions in checkouts. In this context, the company is presenting the world’s first SEPA-compliant POS system at its international in-house trade show, Wincor World. In an innovation showcase, Wincor Nixdorf is demonstrating the BEETLE /M-II with the POS application TP.net, which is equipped with the EPAS Retailer Protocol. This interface standard, which was created as part of the introduction of SEPA in Europe, specifies the protocols for cashless payment solutions. The EPAS standard consists of three parts: a retailer protocol, an acquirer protocol and a terminal management protocol.

EPAS is the basis for standardized integration in SEPA (EU and EFTA countries) of cashless payment systems in retailing and the service station sector. In the long term, it will replace the wide range of different interfaces currently used in Europe.

The EPAS standard not only enables quicker and easier integration of traditional card-based payment solutions on a standardized platform, but also allows links to innovative technology and payment methods, such as mobile payment, biometrics and NFC (near field communication) solutions.

Since the beginning of 2006, more than twenty European companies active in the field of cashless payment solutions and services have been involved in formulating the EPAS specification.
As a founding member, Wincor Nixdorf has been working from the outset on the standardization of EPAS as part of the European project team. With its Open Payment Initiative (O.P.I.®), the company has already proven that it can develop and establish standards in this arena. One of the goals of this initiative was to standardize the interface between the POS application and payment solution. This offers international retail and oil companies investment security and cuts the cost of integrating solutions for handling cashless payment transactions in IT landscapes.