Auchan Group Selects ACI Worldwide To Provide Industry-First, Pan-European Centralized Card Payments Platform

ACI supports one of the world’s largest retailers in its multi-country, omni-channel electronic payment innovation strategy

ACI Worldwide, a leading global provider of electronic payment and banking solutions, recently announced that Auchan Group, one of the world’s largest food retailers, has selected the company to deliver its new SEPA-compliant European card payments platform, the first of its kind in Europe.

Auchan Group is the world’s eleventh largest food retailer, spanning 15 countries. Auchan Group selected ACI’s market-leading, hosted retailer solution, Postilion, as the foundation of this new centralized card payments platform to manage all electronic transactions, through all channels (in-store, online and mobile) across Europe. The platform supports the new European standard EPAS protocol, which addresses the region’s numerous local standards and increasing regulations that have previously stymied growth for retailers.

More than 300 companies across the globe, including some of the world’s largest retailers, rely on ACI’s Postilion to facilitate numerous payment types at the point-of-purchase, allowing them to reduce costs and grow their businesses, independently from point of sale terminals, all in a secure environment in accordance with PCI DSS standards.

"Based on our successful pilot testing in France and Portugal, we knew that a centralized European card payments platform would soon become not only a reality, but a necessity. This new platform, which complies with SEPA standards, is a continuation of our corporate electronic payments strategy for safer, more open and more accessible European centralized acquiring,” said Arnaud Crouzet, Head of Group Global Payments Development, Auchan Group. "Working with ACI, an international company that fully understands and promotes European standards, will allow us to grow and innovate as we build on this broad initiative."

"ACI and Auchan Group share the same disruptive payments vision and we are excited to help drive its ambitious omni-channel payments project with our hosted offerings," said Paul Thomalla, Senior Vice President and General Manager, EMEA, ACI Worldwide. "We believe that many other major retailers will follow Auchan Group’s lead in helping to shape European payments.”

The platform will be jointly operated by ACI and OneyBanque Accord, the banking subsidiary of Auchan Group. It will run in ACI’s secure and fully compliant data center, which hosts banking and payment solutions for more than 4,000 financial institutions, retailers, and billers.

About ACI Worldwide
ACI Worldwide, the Universal Payments company, powers electronic payments and banking for more than 5,000 financial institutions, retailers, billers and processors around the world. ACI software processes $13 trillion each day in payments and securities transactions for more than 250 of the leading global retailers, and 21 of the world’s 25 largest banks. Through our comprehensive suite of software products and hosted services, we deliver a broad range of solutions for payment processing; card and merchant management; online banking; mobile, branch and voice banking; fraud detection; trade finance; and electronic bill presentment and payment. For more information, visit www.aciworldwide.com.