Wero, EPI & the UK National Payments Vision: Preparing payment operations for a multi-rail future

For decades, card operations have largely been structured around a simple reality: Visa and Mastercard dominate the global card ecosystem. As a result, many banks built operational processes, compliance frameworks, and dispute workflows closely aligned with the rules and technologies of these networks.

That landscape is beginning to change

Across multiple markets, governments and industry groups are exploring ways to strengthen domestic payment infrastructure and introduce greater competition in payment rails. In the UK, the National Payments Vision sets out the government's ambition to create a more resilient and innovative payments ecosystem supported by modern infrastructure and a greater choice of payment methods.

At the same time, Europe is seeing renewed efforts to develop regional payment schemes, including initiatives such as Wero, a pan-European digital wallet launched by the European Payments Initiative.

For leaders in payment operations, these developments point toward a future where banks may increasingly need to operate across multiple payment rails and schemes, rather than relying primarily on the traditional card networks.

The challenge is no longer simply managing the "big two". The real question is how to build infrastructure and operational processes capable of supporting additional payment schemes as they emerge, without creating unsustainable complexity in the back office.

The rise of multi-scheme complexity: why domestic alternatives are gaining attention

Historically, domestic payment systems and regional initiatives were often viewed as complementary to the global card networks rather than direct competitors.

However, recent policy discussions around payment sovereignty, infrastructure resilience, and competition are changing that perception. Governments and regulators increasingly view domestic payment capabilities as strategically important to national financial infrastructure.

In the UK, the National Payments Vision has established a coordinated programme involving HM Treasury, the Bank of England, the Financial Conduct Authority, and the Payment Systems Regulator to define the future direction of the country's retail payments infrastructure.

Part of this work includes exploring how the UK's payments ecosystem should evolve in the coming years, including the potential development of new infrastructure and governance models to support innovation and resilience.

For banks, this means that the payments landscape may gradually become more diverse, with additional payment methods, networks, and regulatory frameworks entering the ecosystem.

The operational implications of this shift are significant

If payment infrastructure and processes are tightly coupled to the specific rules of individual schemes, each new network integration can quickly become a complex and resource-intensive project.

For many financial institutions, the primary challenge of adding new payment rails is not simply technical connectivity. The more significant challenge often emerges in the operational layer.

When new schemes are introduced on top of legacy infrastructure, banks frequently encounter a pattern of increasing manual work, fragmented workflows, and operational fragility.

1. Compliance fatigue

Payment networks regularly introduce rule updates, operational mandates, and technical changes. For card issuers, communications such as Visa Business News (VBN) and Mastercard bulletins frequently require teams to review rule changes, interpret operational impacts, and coordinate internal implementation.

Introducing additional payment schemes can increase the number of rulebooks, technical specifications, and regulatory updates that teams must monitor.

• The reality: Each scheme introduces its own compliance requirements and operational mandates.
• The risk: If these updates are managed through fragmented or manual processes, the likelihood of missed updates or delayed implementation increases.

As the number of payment rails grows, the compliance burden can expand quickly.

2. Operational silos

Operational processes already involve multiple systems and rule frameworks. For example, in fraud and disputes, chargeback specialists must navigate different rulebooks and tools depending on the scheme involved. For example, card disputes may be handled through systems such as Visa Resolve Online (VROL) or Mastercom, while collaboration with merchants on pre-dispute matters may involve platforms such as Ethoca or Verifi.

Each scheme also defines its own dispute lifecycles, evidence requirements, and timelines. Introducing additional payment rails can therefore add new layers of operational complexity.

• The reality: Different payment networks often require distinct processes and systems for managing fraud, disputes and other processes.
• The risk: Fragmented workflows increase manual work, reduce operational efficiency, and make it harder for teams to scale.

Over time, these operational silos can slow response times and increase operational costs.

Rethinking payment operations for a multi-rail world

As payment ecosystems evolve, banks may need to rethink how their operational infrastructure is structured.

Traditionally, many systems embed scheme-specific logic directly into operational processes. This approach works reasonably well when a bank primarily interacts with a small number of networks. However, in a more diverse payments landscape, tightly coupling operational workflows to individual schemes can create significant rigidity.

An alternative approach is to design payment operations around scheme-agnostic workflows, where core processes such as compliance monitoring, dispute management, and reporting remain consistent across networks.

In this model, the operational framework remains stable while the underlying payment rails can evolve. This shift allows institutions to introduce new schemes or payment methods with less disruption to internal teams and operational processes.

Future-proofing payment operations

The ultimate goal of a scheme-agnostic infrastructure is not simply technical flexibility, it is operational resilience.

Payment operations teams should not need to rebuild workflows every time a new payment rail is introduced. Instead, teams should be able to work within standardised operational processes that remain consistent regardless of the underlying network.

When payment operations are structured in this way, institutions can:

• Reduce the need for scheme-specific operational silos

• Scale compliance monitoring across multiple rule frameworks

• Integrate new payment rails with less operational disruption

This becomes increasingly important as payment ecosystems expand to include account-to-account payments, digital wallets, and new domestic infrastructure initiatives.

From reactive to resilient

The global payments ecosystem is gradually becoming more diverse. Initiatives such as Europe's Wero and the UK's National Payments Vision illustrate how governments and industry are exploring ways to strengthen payment infrastructure and encourage innovation.

The UK programme, for example, has introduced new governance structures, including the Payments Vision Delivery Committee to coordinate the future development of retail payments infrastructure.

For banks, these developments highlight an important operational question: how to remain adaptable as new payment networks and regulatory frameworks emerge. Institutions that treat each new scheme as a standalone project risk creating fragmented systems and operational complexity over time. By contrast, banks that build scheme-agnostic operational frameworks may be better positioned to adapt as the payments landscape evolves.

In a multi-rail future, resilience will depend less on the number of networks a bank supports and more on how effectively those networks can be managed through unified operational processes.

As payment ecosystems evolve through initiatives such as Wero and the UK's National Payments Vision, financial institutions will increasingly need operational models designed for adaptability.

At Rivero, we work with issuers across Europe that are preparing their payment operations for this evolving multi-scheme environment. Watch the on-demand product demos to see how our solutions simplify compliance, dispute management, and operations across multiple payment rails.