Bancontact Payconiq Company opens a new chapter for Belgian payments with the "Bancontact Pay" brand

The strategic overhaul of the brand architecture planned for 2026 aims to simplify the user experience and reaffirm the company's leadership in innovation for consumers and merchants.

6 November 2025

Brussels, 6 November 2025 – Bancontact Payconiq Company, Belgium’s leading electronic payments provider, today announced a major strategic overhaul of its identity and brands. In spring 2026, the company will become "Bancontact Company" and its mobile payment solution will evolve to become "Bancontact Pay". This change, one of the most significant in recent history, follows the discontinuation of the Payconiq brand, which was announced earlier this year. Through this change, the company has redefined its brand architecture to make it simpler, more consistent and easier to understand for consumers and merchants.

A legacy of innovation for the future

Since the creation of the Bancontact network in 1979, the company has continued to innovate, simplifying the daily lives of consumers. From the Proton electronic wallet in 1995 to the launch of the QR code mobile payment app in 2014, which made Belgium a pioneer in Europe, the company has consistently anticipated market needs.

In spring 2026, building on this DNA, the company will take a new strategic step. In a context where payment sovereignty has become a key issue, Bancontact Payconiq Company is aligning its local vision with European ambitions. As a distributor of Wero, the new pan-European payment solution (initiated by EPI), the company will play a central role in offering merchants in Belgium simplified access to European payments, while strengthening the local ecosystem.

"Our history is one of trust and innovation, serving consumers and merchants in Belgium. Today, we are preparing for the future," says Nathalie Vandepeute, CEO of Bancontact Payconiq Company. "The transition to Bancontact Company in spring 2026 is a natural evolution: it unifies our corporate identity under the strongest and most recognised banner we have. With a simplified brand architecture, we are clarifying our offering to make paying and getting paid more intuitive than ever. This new identity bridges the gap between our heritage, acclaimed by millions of consumers and merchants, and our vision of a future of simple, secure and open payments across Europe."

What will change for consumers in spring 2026: the arrival of "Bancontact Pay"

For the two million users of the current "Payconiq by Bancontact" app, the transition will be effortless:
- App update: the current app will become the "Bancontact Pay" app. The update will be automatic and will not require any new downloads.
- Total continuity: the change will mainly be visual (new name, logo, colours). All the features that users appreciate – payments by QR code in-store, between friends, online and in-app – will remain unchanged.
For all consumers, this change will bring greater clarity, both online and in-store:
- For online payments, three new names will appear depending on the type of Bancontact payment, with the intention of creating a family of brands under the consistent umbrella of Bancontact to offer a more straightforward and more readable experience:
  - "Bancontact Pay": for mobile payments via a banking app or the Bancontact Pay app (formerly "Payconiq by Bancontact").
  - "Bancontact Card": for online payments by Bancontact debit card via a card reader.
  - "Bancontact One Click": for one-click payments when the consumer has already registered the payment card details with a merchant.
For in-store payments: the current Payconiq stickers will be replaced in spring 2026 by a new sticker with a QR code mentioning both Bancontact Pay and Wero. This QR code can be scanned with banking apps and the Bancontact Pay app (the current Payconiq by Bancontact app), just as it is today.

What changes in spring 2026 for merchants currently accepting Payconiq?

Merchants will also see their dedicated tools grouped under a single banner: "Bancontact Pro":
- The current "Payconiq Go" app, which allows merchants to receive payments via QR code on their mobile phones, will become "Bancontact Pro".
- The merchant portal that allows merchants to track their payments will also be renamed "Bancontact Pro".
More payment solutions:
- Following the disappearance of Payconiq, a new payment platform will be made available to merchants between October and December 2025. This platform will still accept payments via the Payconiq by Bancontact app (Bancontact Pay tomorrow) and banking apps.
- It currently supports Bancontact and will support Wero in spring 2026.
Seamless transition:
- Simplicity: migration is fully automatic for most merchants. For some, it is managed by their technical partners.
- Continuity: no service interruption is expected.
- Price neutrality: current prices are frozen until the end of 2026, ensuring a transition with no financial impact.
New in-store visuals: in spring 2026, each merchant will receive a new set of visual aids, including the new sticker with the payment QR code and window stickers, to inform their customers that they accept Bancontact and Wero payments.

A trusted brand, ready for tomorrow

With nearly 18 million cards in circulation, 2 million active users of its app, integration into most banking apps and more than 2.5 billion transactions per year, Bancontact is a brand deeply rooted in the daily lives of consumers in Belgium. Recognised as the second most "meaningful" brand in the country (Havas Meaningful Brands 2025), it is synonymous with easy and secure electronic payments. Bancontact Company's new identity will build on this trust to propel the brand into a new decade of innovation.