Bank of Spain to closely monitor money transfers starting from this month

The entry into force of a European directive on 9 January brought about a significant change in bank money transfers. It establishes that the price of an immediate transfer must be the same as that of an ordinary transfer. These transfers must be executed instantly (in about 20 seconds), 24/7, including holidays. All banks operating in the eurozone are required to have this system in place by 9 October.

So much for the theoretical side of the directive. The problem, according to the Spanish OCU consumers' organisation, is that, in practice, many banks are applying "unjustifiably low" limits, preventing users from taking full advantage of this service. "Although European regulations set a legal limit of up to 100,000 euros per transaction, some banks allow only 700 or 1,000 euros to be transferred," the OCU states. "Unfortunately, we notice that this is a common practice and as such we have reported it to the Bank of Spain."

The consumers' organisation's wake-up call seems to have worked, as the Bank of Spain has informed it of its intention to monitor these limits. The OCU has asked the Bank of Spain to do the following:

- Establish technical criteria or guidance on the maximum limits that institutions may set for immediate transfers, so that they are not disproportionate and discouraging;

- Inform customers that the maximum amount for an ordinary and an immediate transfer is the same;

- Ensure that limits imposed by entities are transparent, modifiable by the user and justified on real security grounds rather than commercial restrictions.

The OCU stated that the aim of the European regulation is to encourage the use of immediate payments, facilitating their access on equal terms with traditional transfers. "However, in practice, these low limits represent a barrier that forces users to either split payments or resort to ordinary transfers that can take up to two days to complete," the OCU explained.