The European Central Bank looks into allowing money transfers via phone numbers or email addresses

The European Central Bank (ECB) plans to introduce a system that would allow consumers to transfer money using their phone numbers or email addresses, rather than a bank account number. In such a system, consumers could, for example, link their telephone numbers to the International Bank Account Number (IBAN). A committee composed of representatives of major European banks has been set up by ECB to work on the plan, and it is expected that a timeline for its work will be announced around mid year. ECB officials said that main obstacles to the creation of such a system are not technical, but legal. Source