giropay was an online banking transfer payment method operated by the German banking industry, but it discontinued service at the end of 2024, so new adoption is not possible. This page is intended not as adoption guidance but as notice of the discontinuation and guidance on alternative payment methods for the German market.
giropay discontinued service at the end of 2024. Even after its brand merger with paydirekt, it failed to secure a sufficient user base against competition from PayPal and others, and the German banking industry's focus is reported to have shifted toward a pan-European payment initiative. As a result, no payment strategy premised on giropay is currently viable.
Coverage for German customer payments is typically reorganized around a combination of PayPal, the buy-now-pay-later-focused Klarna, account-based SEPA direct debit, and standard bank transfer.
Before it was discontinued, giropay worked by having the consumer log in to their own bank's online banking and approve the transfer. Since new transaction processing was halted at the end of 2024, payments can no longer be accepted through this flow.
New giropay integration is not offered through Hecto Financial. If you are considering entering the German market, please proceed with a consultation based on the combination of alternative methods described above.
※ This section describes the general support process and does not guarantee that integration will be possible for any specific merchant. Please confirm the exact scope of support and fees through a consultation.
If a giropay option remains on your existing payment screen, it needs to be removed and any related messaging cleaned up
Consider a combination suited to your customer base among account-based (SEPA), wallet (PayPal), and buy-now-pay-later (Klarna) methods
Check whether any unprocessed refunds or disputes remain from past giropay transactions
When integrating an alternative method, confirm compliance with EU payment regulations such as PSD2 and SCA (see official sources below)
Settlement for giropay itself no longer occurs. Even when adopting an alternative method, the structure remains the same: Hecto Financial receives German customer funds in euros (EUR), converts them, and settles with the Korean merchant in whichever of USD, KRW, or JPY was chosen in the contract.
Hecto Financial's team will work with you to review the payment method mix best suited to the German market.
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