EMPSA Expands Its Working Groups and Appoints Newly Elected Leaders to Accelerate Payment Interoperability Across Europe
Brussels, November 20, 2025
EMPSA announces the election of new Chairs and Vice-Chairs for its three working groups, marking a key milestone in the implementation of EMPSA’s strategic objectives.
These objectives reaffirm EMPSA’s commitment to strengthening Europe’s payments sovereignty through private, account-based mobile payment solutions, and to advancing common standards and interoperability across the continent.
Teresa Mesquita, who was recently elected as EMPSA Chairperson, emphasized: “These appointments reinforce our commitment to leveraging European payment brands in delivering a pan-European solution founded on interoperability. The next years will be crucial, and the work carried out by these groups will be essential to achieving our goals.”
Working Groups & Appointments:
– Interoperability Working Group: Tasked with strengthening EMPSA’s technical frameworks and driving interoperability by aligning standards with evolving market needs. The group will engage industry experts to validate developments, support key initiatives, and establish clear protocols and partnerships to ensure scalable innovation, transparent governance, and strategic collaboration.
- Chair: Martín Azcue López, Business Development Director, Bizum
- Vice-Chair: Tiago Marques, SIBS
– Policy Working Group: Responsible for monitoring legislative developments, liaising with EU institutions and supervisory bodies, and ensuring EMPSA’s position as a key stakeholder in the European payments ecosystem. The group will advocate for a level playing field for account-based private mobile payment solutions.
- Chair: Mafalda Moz Teixeira, Head of Government Affairs, SIBS
- Vice-Chair: Fernando Rodriguez Ferrer, Deputy CEO & Director of International Expansion, Bizum
– Communication & Media Working Group: Dedicated to enhancing the visibility and public understanding of EMPSA’s mission, activities, and member achievements. The group will develop and execute communication strategies, coordinate media relations, and amplify EMPSA’s collective voice across Europe’s payment landscape through press, social media, events, and industry publications.
- Chair: Chris Pirkner, CEO, Bluecode
- Vice-Chair: Bartłomiej Szklarczuk, Blik
These appointments strengthen EMPSA’s collaborative foundation and support its vision of fostering a unified, innovative, and interoperable European mobile payments ecosystem.
About EMPSA
EMPSA (European Mobile Payment Systems Association) brings together thirteen national mobile payment systems, uniting over 110 million users, more than 8 million merchant acceptance points, and hundreds of European payment service providers, processing billions of transactions annually. The association covers Belgium (BANCONTACT), Germany and Austria (BLUECODE), Denmark, Finland and Norway (VIPPS/MOBILEPAY), Portugal (SIBS/MB WAY), Spain (BIZUM), Sweden (SWISH), Switzerland (TWINT), Italy (BANCOMAT), Poland (BLIK), Bulgaria (BORICA), Greece (DIAS) and Romania (TRANSFOND). More information at www.empsa.org.
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