The European Central Bank (ECB) on Friday called for legislative action to set a date by when firms have to move to the Single Euro Payments Area (Sepa) schemes, as the banking industry's self-imposed deadlines had proven ineffective.

The envisaged regulation establishing Sepa migration end dates for the direct debit and the credit transfer schemes would, the ECB said, "be a key element for the timely and smooth adoption of Sepa."

To create the necessary momentum to bring the Sepa project to