France is a core market within SEPA (the Single Euro Payments Area) with stable bank transfer infrastructure: a standard SCT usually settles within one business day, and an instant transfer (SCT Inst) within seconds. That said, the default for consumer e-commerce payments remains the CB card, so bank transfer proves its value in high-value, lower-frequency transactions — payments that exceed card limits, B2B invoice payments, and deposit-plus-balance style payments.

It suits merchants selling high-ticket items — furniture, musical instruments, used luxury goods, wholesale, education programs — or businesses that issue invoices to French corporate customers. For low-value B2C transactions where checkout immediacy matters, card or open-banking-based Pay by Bank is a better fit.

After placing an order, the consumer or business transfers funds from their own bank (app or online banking) using the provided IBAN and reference number; the payment is confirmed once the deposit is received and matched to the order. Unlike card payments, this involves a "deposit confirmation" step, so confirmation may not be instant, and a missing reference number can delay matching — making clear instructional copy important.

Through Hecto Financial, you can consider integration that covers both the receiving account setup for funds originating in France and deposit matching. France also has its own open-banking-type bank transfer brands, so it's worth using consultation to determine, based on transaction size and customer type, whether the umbrella transfer method or Pay by Bank is the better fit.

• Business registration country

  Confirm contract eligibility based on a Korea-registered business

• Sales channels

  Integration method and priority differ depending on your online sales channel mix — owned storefront, marketplaces, mobile app, and so on

• Product categories

  Check in advance whether your product categories fall under Bank transfer's restricted merchant categories

• EU regulatory compliance

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

Transfer funds are deposited in euros (EUR) into Hecto Financial's receiving account and, after a conversion process, settled to the Korean merchant in whichever of USD, KRW, or JPY is selected in the contract. The settlement cycle follows the contract terms. Because bank transfer has no chargebacks — refunds instead take the form of a reverse remittance — merchants should have a process in place to obtain the consumer's account details when a refund arises, including for the 14-day withdrawal right.

• Banque de France (Central Bank of France)Official information on France's payment systems and related regulations. If this page's content differs from actual regulations, the official source takes precedence.
• Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et de résolution (ACPR)The authority that licenses and supervises payment service providers. Useful for confirming payment service regulations in France.