With Bulgaria's euro adoption in January 2026, general consumer accounts have also switched to a euro basis, laying the foundation for a SEPA Credit Transfer checkout built on an open banking payment initiation service (PISP). Under the EU's Instant Payments Regulation, eurozone banks are being required in phases to support SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst), but since Bulgaria's euro conversion is recent, the timing of SCT Inst support can vary by bank, so it is safer to confirm partner bank coverage in advance.

Unlike SEPA Direct Debit, which requires a mandate collected in advance, this is a one-off payment that the consumer approves individually each time, and unlike a standard bank transfer, where you provide account details and wait for the deposit, the result is known as soon as the consumer approves. It is a good alternative for general merchandise sales that need approval confirmation while keeping card fees down, and for one-off, high-value payments rather than subscriptions.

When the customer picks their bank on the payment screen, the payment initiation service (PISP) sends an approval request with the amount and payee filled in to that bank's app or web banking, and the transfer is initiated as soon as customer authentication completes. Because this comes right after the euro changeover, the breadth of SCT Inst support may vary by bank: where an instant transfer is established the funds arrive within seconds, and otherwise on the standard SEPA transfer schedule. Hecto Financial receives and converts these EUR funds and settles them to the merchant in Korea in the contracted currency among USD, KRW, and JPY.

Hecto Financial supports domestic merchants in adopting a SEPA checkout for Bulgaria through integration with a PSD2-authorized payment initiation service partner. Since the euro conversion is still recent, it is best to confirm each bank's SCT Inst coverage before signing a contract and to design your inventory and order-confirmation logic around the structure in which the result is finalized the moment approval is given.

• Business registration country

  Confirm contract eligibility for businesses registered in Korea

• Sales channels

  The integration approach and priorities vary depending on your mix of online sales channels, such as your own site, open marketplaces, and mobile apps

• Product categories

  Check in advance whether your products fall under categories restricted by the SEPA payment initiation partner's merchant policy

• EU regulatory compliance

  Confirm compliance with EU payment regulations such as PSD2 and SEPA (see official sources below)

The first thing to understand is that the refund and dispute structure differs from cards. Because this is a push transfer the customer approves and sends themselves, there is no chargeback procedure, and the 8-week unconditional refund right of the automatic debit scheme does not attach either. For settlement, Hecto Financial receives the EUR, converts it, and pays out in the USD, KRW, or JPY currency agreed at contract on the contracted cycle. Since a completed transfer is final, if grounds for return arise, such as a Bulgarian consumer's 14-day right of withdrawal, the merchant must send a fresh refund transfer to the consumer's account, and it is advisable to have refund guidance in order for customer inquiries in the early stage of the euro changeover.

• Bulgarian National Bank (Българска народна банка, BNB)Official information on Bulgaria's payment systems and the regulations around its 2026 euro conversion. If actual regulations differ from this page's content, the official source takes precedence.