What Is EBICS?
Short answer
EBICS is a standard protocol for exchanging files between a company and its banks over the internet. It is used mainly in Germany, France, Austria and Switzerland. Each user identifies with keys confirmed by a signed letter, and the contract says what the user may do: a transport contract (EBICS T) can download statements, which is all a reconciliation tool needs. It moves files, it does not match them.
EBICS (Electronic Banking Internet Communication Standard) is a protocol that lets a company exchange files with its banks over the internet: download statements, and, when the contract allows it, send payment files. It is a bank-to-corporate channel, set up under a contract between the company and each bank.
EBICS started in Germany, then spread to France, Austria and Switzerland. In those countries most banks that serve businesses offer it, and many treasury and accounting tools speak it. The standard is maintained by the EBICS company, owned by the national banking associations of the countries that use it. See ebics.org.
How it works
- The contract. The company signs an EBICS contract with its bank. The bank sends the connection details: the server address, a Host ID for the bank, a Partner ID for the company and a User ID for each person or system that connects.
- The keys. The user creates a set of key pairs: one to sign, one to authenticate, one to encrypt. The public keys are sent to the bank electronically.
- The initialisation letter. The user prints a letter with the hashes of those public keys, signs it and sends it to the bank. The bank compares the letter with the keys it received, then activates the access. This step proves that the keys really come from the company.
- The bank’s keys. The user downloads the bank’s public keys and checks their hashes against the ones the bank published. From then on, each exchange is authenticated and encrypted in both directions.
- File exchange. The user downloads the files the contract offers, for example end-of-day statements, and, with the right contract, uploads payment files.
No password travels in this flow. Access rests on the keys and on the letter that ties them to the company.
Transport or transport and signature
| Contract | What it allows | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| EBICS T (transport) | Exchanging files. Payment files sent this way need a separate approval at the bank. | Downloading statements; uploading payment files that a person then approves elsewhere |
| EBICS TS (transport and signature) | Exchanging files, and signing payment orders with the EBICS signature | Sending payments directly from a treasury or ERP system |
A tool that only reads statements needs EBICS T. Asking for no more than that keeps the risk low: the tool cannot send a payment.
Which files it carries
EBICS carries files; the formats inside are separate standards. For bank statements the usual ones are:
| File | Content |
|---|---|
| camt.053 | End-of-day statement: the booked transactions of the previous day (ISO 20022) |
| camt.052 | Intraday report: transactions of the current day, before the statement (ISO 20022) |
| camt.054 | Debit and credit notifications, often with the details of grouped payments (ISO 20022) |
| MT940 | End-of-day statement in the older SWIFT format |
The bank decides which files each contract offers, and for which accounts. A tool can ask the bank for that list over EBICS itself.
Versions
Two versions are in use. EBICS 2.5 was the common version for years. EBICS 3.0 aligns the countries on one way to name files and services, and banks are moving to it. A bank states in the contract which versions it accepts.
EBICS compared with open banking
| EBICS | Open banking (PSD2 account information) | |
|---|---|---|
| Legal basis | A contract between the company and its bank | A regulation: the bank must give access to licensed providers |
| Setup | Contract, keys, signed letter, bank activation | A login at the bank and a consent |
| Renewal | None while the contract and keys are valid | The consent expires and must be renewed |
| Data | Standard statement files (camt, MT940) | What the bank’s interface exposes, which varies from bank to bank |
| Countries | Mainly Germany, France, Austria, Switzerland | The EU, the EEA and, under its own rules, the UK |
| Payments | Possible with an EBICS TS contract | Through a separate payment initiation service |
Companies often use both: EBICS for their main banks in the countries that offer it, and open banking or statement files for the others.
What EBICS does not do
- It does not match payments to invoices. It delivers the statement files. Deciding which invoice a payment settles is a separate step.
- It does not make banks consistent. Two banks can fill the same camt field differently, and a payer’s account or reference may still be missing.
- It does not prove completeness. A successful download is not proof that every transaction of the period arrived. Balances still need checking.
In Invunion
Invunion uses EBICS to download statements only. It works with an EBICS T contract, in EBICS 3.0 or 2.5, and never sends payments.
- Invunion creates your keys, keeps them sealed and never shows them. You print, sign and send the initialisation letter, then confirm the bank’s keys.
- Invunion reads which accounts and files your contract offers, and downloads camt.053, camt.052, camt.054 or MT940 files on the schedule you set.
- Each file is imported like any other statement: the transactions are added and matching runs on them. A line already in Invunion is never loaded twice.
- The account numbers in the files are stored encrypted and shown masked.
The steps are in the Guide: EBICS. To compare with the other ways to bring in bank data, read What Is Open Banking?.
Sources
- EBICS SCRL, EBICS official website
- ISO 20022, Message definitions: cash management (camt)
Updated