iDEAL

What iDEAL Is

iDEAL is a bank-transfer method rather than a card method. The scheme describes it as an online payment method that lets consumers pay via their own bank: the payer is handed to the mobile banking app or internet banking environment of their own bank and approves the payment there, so the money moves from the payer's own account. No separate registration is needed — access to internet or mobile banking with one of the participating issuers is enough. The scheme's own FAQ characterises an iDEAL payment as a guaranteed online transfer from the payer's IBAN to the recipient's IBAN.

Where iDEAL Is Used

iDEAL has been the standard for online payments in the Netherlands since 2005, when it was introduced by the largest Dutch banks. The scheme states that more than 210,000 businesses offer it in their web shops, payment requests and invoices, and that 70% of all e-commerce transactions in the Netherlands run through it. It is used well beyond retail — the scheme lists energy bills, charitable donations, topping up call credit, municipal taxes and traffic fines among its uses.

The Move to the European Payments Initiative

iDEAL was partly transferred to the European Payments Initiative on 31 October 2023. The scheme describes itself, together with Payconiq International, as a basis for a European payment solution intended to be available in several countries in future.

The Migration to Wero

iDEAL is now being migrated to Wero, the European Payments Initiative's payment system, and the scheme has rebranded itself iDEAL | Wero. Wero is described as built on the foundation of iDEAL and backed by 16 major European banks, including the Dutch banks behind iDEAL, and as already live in Belgium, Germany and France.

The migration is phased and the scheme is explicit that nothing breaks while it runs: merchants are told their checkout will continue to work, their payment service provider stays unchanged, and there is nothing they need to adjust. The scheme states that all iDEAL merchants will have transitioned to Wero by the end of 2027 at the latest, and that the iDEAL brand will then be phased out gradually. Its About page puts full implementation of Wero in the course of 2028. The scheme also cautions that its communication about technical migration and final milestones is subject to further consultation with the regulator, so the dates are the scheme's own intention rather than a settled timetable.

For a reader at a casino cashier the practical position is unchanged: iDEAL works today, and the name beside the logo is in the process of changing.

Fees and Timings

No consumer fee and no settlement time are given here. The scheme publishes fees for the licence holders and certificate holders in its own network rather than a charge to the payer, and no iDEAL page states a player-facing deposit time. Neither is estimated.