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The payment system as a public good? Lessons learned in the Netherlands
Journal of Payments Strategy & Systems,
12
(4),
304-313
(2018)
Abstract
Uniform, standardised payment methods reduce transaction costs considerably, allowing payments to be made more efficiently. This is especially true for purchases and sales on the internet, where payment innovations make it much easier for customers to pay for e-commerce transactions. The role of the government in this is to safeguard the public interest with respect to the payment system. This paper discusses various viewpoints for government intervention from the perspective of public sector economics. More specifically, regulators need to set rules for new players in relation to the revised Payment Services Directive.
Keywords: trust; transaction costs; innovation; e-commerce; public interest; market failure
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Author's Biography
Frank A.G. Den Butter is Professor of Economics at Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam. From 1973 to 1988 he worked in the Dutch Central Bank. He studied econometrics at the University of Amsterdam and has a PhD from Erasmus University Rotterdam. He has been member of the Scientific Council for Government Policy at the Prime Minister’s Office, a Director of the Tinbergen Institute and Chairman of the Royal Netherlands Economic Association.
Piet M. Mallekoote is CEO at the Dutch Payments Association, whose members are payment banks and payments institutions in the Netherlands. Piet is also CEO at the iDEAL payment scheme. He chairs several steering and stakeholder groups on innovative payments and is involved in many national and international meetings on payments. Piet has a degree in economics from the University of Amsterdam.
