In the Netherlands, the default for bank-transfer-type online payments is iDEAL, which accounts for about 70% of e-commerce, and Sofort's share of local consumer payments is limited. On top of that, Sofort is not an independent service but a Klarna-owned brand, and new merchant setups are trending toward being absorbed into Klarna's Pay Now (bank transfer).

As a result, there is little practical benefit to adopting Sofort separately for the Netherlands market alone. It becomes worth considering for Korean merchants who also sell into German-speaking markets such as Germany and Austria, when they bundle transfer and pay-later options within the Klarna product suite; for transfers aimed at Dutch consumers, iDEAL remains the priority.

When a consumer selects Sofort (Pay Now) and approves the transfer via their own bank login, the transaction is finalized. Hecto Financial receives the funds in euros (EUR), converts them, and settles to the Korean merchant in the contracted currency—USD, KRW, or JPY. Because approval is based on bank login, PSD2's SCA (Strong Customer Authentication) is satisfied during the bank authentication step.

When integrating through Hecto Financial, Sofort-family transfer payments are generally considered as part of the Klarna product suite; support terms, including whether a Korea-based company can proceed without a local contract in the Netherlands, need to be confirmed with the sales team before contracting.

• Country of business registration

  Confirm contract eligibility as a Korea-based business

• Sales channels

  The integration approach and priority vary depending on your online sales channel mix—owned storefront, open marketplaces, mobile apps, etc.

• Product categories handled

  You must confirm in advance whether your business falls under a restricted category under Sofort's merchant policies

• EU regulatory compliance

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

The settlement flow for Sofort transactions proceeds in the order of receiving euros (EUR), converting them, and paying the Korean merchant in the selected currency—USD, KRW, or JPY—with the cycle following the contract terms. Refunds are processed as a reverse transfer, so you should confirm both Klarna's policy and Hecto Financial's operating standards.

• De Nederlandsche Bank (Dutch Central Bank)Official information on the Dutch payment system and regulatory oversight. If actual regulations differ from the content on this page, the official source takes precedence.