The European Payments Council (EPC) has published an infographic about the Cards Standardisation Volume, a key piece of regulation for the EU cards industry. It's in line with the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) project and aims to create a safer card environment, greater interoperability and achieve cards standardisation.

The Volume was created by the EPC and the Cards Stakeholders Group (CSG) in 2009. Version 7.5 of the Volume is currently under public consultation, a period that will end on 12 August 2016. Once responses have been analysed by the CSG, version 8 will be published in December 2016 and its implementation will take place over a three-year period from December 2016 to December 2019.

The main achievements of the volume include a standardised use of cards throughout SEPA for consumers and more business opportunities for merchants, as well as better investment planning for the card industry.

For more details, see the infographic below: