When a large EUR payment moves across the eurozone, it clears on either TARGET2 (the Eurosystem RTGS, since 2023 migrated to T2 / TARGET Services) or EURO1 (the private netting system operated by EBA Clearing). Both are workhorses; the difference matters for finality and cost.
T2 (the successor to TARGET2 since March 2023) is the Eurosystem's RTGS. Settlement is in central-bank money, real-time, irrevocable. Operated by the ECB on behalf of the eurozone central banks.
EURO1 is operated by EBA Clearing. It is a private deferred net settlement system — payments accumulate during the day, net positions settle once at end-of-day across T2. Suitable for high-volume, predictable flows.
Cost: EURO1 is significantly cheaper for participants. T2 fees range from 0.125 EUR per transaction (high volume tier) to 1.875 EUR (low volume). EURO1 is fractions of a cent in netted-flow basis.
Speed: T2 settles immediately. EURO1 is intraday-final from the participant's perspective (binding obligation) but central-bank-final only at end-of-day.
STEP1 is EURO1's smaller-bank sibling — same netting infrastructure, smaller threshold for participation.
For cross-border EUR wires entering the eurozone, the choice between T2 and EURO1 is made by the receiving bank based on the size, urgency and liquidity profile. Customer-facing experience is identical.
Replaced March 2023 by T2 (cash leg) and T2S (securities leg), collectively "TARGET Services". The name TARGET2 is still in colloquial use.
No. STEP2 is the SEPA processor (low-value mass payments). EURO1 is the high-value netting system. Both run by EBA Clearing.
RT1 (also EBA Clearing) for many banks, or TIPS (TARGET Instant Payment Settlement) for those connected to the Eurosystem instant rail.
GPI shows the bank-leg timestamps; the underlying RTGS choice is not specifically exposed but bank operations teams can see it.