A strategic partnership built on security, automation, and trust
Fraud in digital ticketing is a daily challenge for public transport operators across Europe. As subscription-based tickets and cashless payments become the norm, the need for secure, automated payment processes is rising.
This is where the new partnership between Ximedes and Twikey comes in. By combining expertise in ticketing and fare collection with payment automation, this collaboration has one specific goal: to create a comprehensive protection against payment fraud while delivering a smoother experience for both operators and passengers.
Why Twikey? Choosing the Right Payment Partner
When Ximedes set out to strengthen its payment infrastructure, the criteria were clear: a partner capable of preventing fraud in recurring payments, automatically handling failed transactions, and increasing the payment success rate. Twikey stood out for its reliable payment workflows and intelligent automation, particularly its ability to manage failed payments through retries, reminders, and, when necessary, cancellations.
After successfully testing the integration of Twikey’s orchestration platform into Ximedes’ ticketing system, a full migration has started and is expected to take 3–6 months. Once completed, all payments processed through Ximedes’ ticketing systems will flow through Twikey’s platform before being collected via SEPA Direct Debit (subscription payments via other methods like credit cards or PayPal are also possible). This ensures that every transaction is monitored, validated, and, if something goes wrong, automatically followed up on, without burdening PTO staff with manual interventions.
Fraud Prevention: The Heart of Our Collaboration
At the core of this collaboration is a multi-layered security system that systematically verifies SEPA Direct Debit mandates for account existence, activity status, and available funds. Combined with advanced payment collection and active blocklist management, this creates multiple barriers against fraudulent transactions.
The results speak for themselves. In Koblenz, Germany, koveb faced a pressing challenge. "A major problem we had was fraud cases with the Deutschland-Ticket," said Christian Mund, Head of Finance, IT, and HR at koveb. Within the first days after launch, dozens of fraudulent transactions were automatically blocked, including one attempt to purchase 600 Deutschland-Tickets, preventing a potential loss exceeding €30,000.
What makes this possible? The solution doesn't just process payments; it actively monitors them. When a payment fails or appears suspicious, automated follow-up actions kick in immediately.
Preventing Major Fraud Cases
The security measures demonstrated their effectiveness within the first days after the app launch: dozens of fraudulent transactions were automatically stopped. One particularly severe case illustrates the damage potential: a fraudster attempted to purchase 600 Deutschland-Tickets, representing potential losses exceeding €30,000, which was prevented through timely verification.
Ximedes' data analysis reveals the extent of systematic fraud attempts: 90 percent of failed mandates originated from disposable email addresses. In another case, a single user attempted to set up SEPA mandates 22 times with newly created accounts that lacked sufficient funds. The analysis also revealed particularly high fraud activity at month-end – a pattern confirmed by both Twikey and koveb in their evaluations.
How It Works: Behind the Scenes
When a customer signs on for an e-mandate (which authorises the merchant to collect recurring payments), Twikey can automatically verify whether the IBAN and the name of the customer match. In addition, Twikey can also check the account’s recent transaction history, how long the account has been active and what cash reserves it has. Potentially concerning data can be flagged this way (e.g. if an account has no prior transaction history or if it is empty).
When a customer is securely signed on, payments can still sometimes fail to go through. In that case, Twikey offers fallback options like a secure pay page or a QR code to help the customer pay in other ways. Twikey recognises distinct types of failure (e.g. the account is closed, the input was incorrect, there’s been a duplication, etc.) and reacts accordingly, without the need for manual intervention.
Navigating Europe's Evolving Payment Landscape
The partnership between Ximedes and Twikey arrives at a critical juncture for European payments. Traditional payment options are being replaced by emerging methods such as Wero in Germany, Belgium, and France. Meanwhile, SEPA direct debit verification has become increasingly critical, especially in the German market, where regulatory scrutiny around recurring payments continues to grow.
Public transport operators can no longer rely on a single payment method. They need flexible, future-proof solutions that connect with multiple banks and payment providers across Europe. The Ximedes-Twikey partnership delivers exactly that: a unified platform capable of adapting to regional payment preferences while maintaining the highest security standards.
This isn't just about solving today's challenges, it's about positioning PTOs for tomorrow's opportunities.
Why This Partnership Delivers Results
The Ximedes-Twikey partnership distinguishes itself by combining deep domain knowledge in both fare collection and payment orchestration, creating a solution that understands the unique challenges of public transport.
Rather than treating payments as a bolt-on feature, we've architected a seamless integration between ticketing software and financial systems. This proactive approach to fraud prevention and payment automation reflects a deeper commitment: we're not just vendors, we're partners invested in the long-term success of European public transport.
Looking Ahead
As European mobility continues its digital transformation, Ximedes and Twikey are committed to developing new features and setting new standards for secure, automated payments in public transport.
The future of fare collection is cashless, frictionless, and, thanks to partnerships like this, far more secure.
Ready to transform your payment processes? Discover how secure, automated payments can strengthen your ticketing environment. Contact us to learn more about our joint solution.
