The mobile wallet Twint has become part of everyday life for many consumers in Switzerland. More than six million residents use the app. Now Twint plans to provide a service for paying recurring bills, with the service scheduled to launch at the start of 2027.
Twint’s plans to provide an alternative to direct debit orders have been known for some time now. But Twint recently released more details, announcing that its direct debit alternative will be available from 2027. Twint has not yet published information about fees and charges.
With the new service, Twint users will be able to approve a recurring bill, after which all bills from that creditor will be paid automatically via Twint. There will be an option for customers to dispute incorrect charges.
Early announcement from Twint
Twint is releasing information early on so that merchants, banks, and payment service providers have enough time to integrate the new service for direct debits.
The service is not yet available to consumers.
The option provided by some merchants to save Twint as your preferred method for payment will remain in place. This option can already be used to automatically pay ticket purchases in the SBB/CFF app, Netflix subscriptions, and Salt mobile plans via Twint. But these are automatic online payments rather than direct debits.
Twint versus SIX: Who will win the recurring payments race?
There is a good reason why Twint is rushing to bring a recurring payments solution to market. In around two years, Swiss banks will stop providing conventional direct debit orders. Twint aims to position its service as a successor to conventional direct debits. Other companies like SIX, the company behind the eBill Debit Direct service, are also marketing their alternatives.
Which service will end up being adopted by consumers is not yet known. Consumer adoption largely depends on which service is adopted by merchants and banks.
There are also banks that do not plan to phase out conventional direct debit orders. Postfinance will continue to provide its own direct debit order service. UBS wants to continue providing direct debit orders to its customers, for payments to merchants that have accepted a relevant agreement.
Conclusion by Ralf Beyeler
Currently, Twint is primarily known for its peer-to-peer money transfer service. Twint is also often used as a payment method at Swiss online and brick-and-mortar merchants.
But Twint has not yet been able to establish itself in the billing market. In spite of launching a QR-bill payment service six years ago, the use of Twint for bill payments remains marginal.
To my point of view, the difference is in the application. Twint is strongly positioned in the payments sector, but not in the classic billing sector.
Whether consumers will move to paying their health insurance or tax bills with Twint is somewhat doubtful. Today, bills like these are typically paid using online or mobile banking solutions from banks.
Finding merchants that want to offer the new service as a payment option will likely be a challenge for Twint. One reason for this is the fees that Twint charges to merchants for accepting payments are relatively high. My expectation is that Twint will charge the same fees for direct debits as it charges for payments. Realistically, we will likely see fees in the realm of 1.3 percent.
Deal of the Day 
