# EBICS with Cortena: from bank request to payments

Ask your bank for EBICS (statements ± payments, SEPA ± non-SEPA), INI letter timeline, daily activation checks, and email 2-factor payment approval with amount risk paths.

Connect your bank with **EBICS 3.0 (H005)** so Cortena can import **bank statements** and, when enabled, **send payments** (SEPA and optional non-SEPA). Private keys required for EBICS and the actual bank execution run in a separate, protected, per-tenant dedicated security context, so the keys to the bank stay protected to the highest possible standards at all times.

**Who this is for:** Finance / treasury admins setting up EBICS with their bank and Cortena. You need bank-connection permissions; payment sending also needs payment-processing access.

## Overview: the journey

![EBICS journey: horizontal setup from bank request through INI letter and sync, then optional payments with email authorize and Low / Medium / Large risk paths into bank upload](https://help.cortena.ai/assets/img/help/ebics/01-ebics-journey.png)

The chart reads left to right in two short bands (setup, then optional payments). Amount risk paths stay side by side so the figure stays shallow.

## 1. Ask your bank for EBICS

Contact your bank (or corporate banking portal) and request an **EBICS** connection for Cortena.

| Ask for | Why |
| --- | --- |
| New **Teilnehmer** (subscriber) **or** first-time EBICS enablement | Banks differ: some add a second subscriber next to existing software; others enable EBICS for the first time |
| **Bank statements** (download) | Required for Cortena Banking reconciliation |
| **Payments** (upload) if you will pay from Cortena | Without payment enablement you can sync statements only |
| **SEPA** payments | Domestic / euro SEPA credit transfers |
| **Non-SEPA** (international) payments if relevant | Say this explicitly when your business pays outside SEPA. Banks often enable SEPA-only unless you ask |

Collect the values Cortena will need later: EBICS URL (https), Host ID, Partner ID, User ID, and any bank-specific short names. Cortena’s bank picker can prefill many host fields once you know which bank you use.

## 2. Create the connection and INI letter in Cortena

When the bank has delivered the details:

1. Open **Settings → Integrations → Banking → EBICS** (contact Cortena Support if EBICS is not enabled for your workspace).
2. Click **Add EBICS connection**.
3. Choose the **Bank** (searchable list) and fill **Display name**, host fields (**EBICS URL**, **Host ID**, **Partner ID**, **User ID**, …).
4. Set **Load transactions from** (first statement sync date) and **Letter language** (German / English / French).
5. Click **Create & initialize**. Cortena generates keys in the per-tenant security context and prepares the **INI letter**.

Then:

1. Click **Download INI letter (PDF)**.
2. **Sign** the letter according to your bank’s rules.
3. **Send** the signed PDF to the bank separately (their channel: portal, mail, or relationship manager). Cortena does not post the signed letter for you.

Until the bank activates the subscriber, the connection stays in awaiting activation. Cortena checks from INI creation **once a day**, or use **Check bank activation status**.

## 3. After activation: statements and accounts

When status is **ready**:

1. Use **Sync statements** to import statements (camt.053; camt.052 fallback where needed).
2. Tick which accounts should appear in **Banking**; unticked accounts are removed from Banking.
3. If the bank has no account list, Cortena may adopt IBANs from statement files (amber hint). Balances use the statement closing balance when present, otherwise the sum of imported transactions.

**Load transactions from**: first sync uses this date; later syncs continue from the last successful one.

Optional: **Revoke** wipes subscriber keys after confirmation.

## 4. Paying with EBICS (when payments are enabled)

Payment batches still start in Cortena (**Send for payment** → **Payables → Payments**). Nothing is uploaded to the bank until someone **authorizes**.

### Explicit 2-factor via email

1. On the EBICS batch, click **Authorize via email**.
2. Cortena emails [**payment-authorizations@cortena.ai**](mailto:payment-authorizations@cortena.ai) to the person who started authorization, listing each transfer.
3. That person opens the link **while signed in as themselves** and confirms (**Authorize and send via EBICS**).

This email confirmation is the explicit second factor before Cortena schedules the upload to the bank. Step-by-step UI: [Authorize EBICS payments via email](https://help.cortena.ai/guides/integrations/authorize-ebics-payments-email).

### How Cortena schedules after confirmation

After you confirm, the payment is **scheduled**. Handling depends on size (illustrative paths):

| Path | What happens |
| --- | --- |
| **Low** amounts | Handed over to the bank **promptly** |
| **Medium** amounts | **Delayed a few hours** so there is time to roll back if something looks wrong |
| **Large** amounts | Also sent to the **Cortena risk team** for a manual check by a Cortena colleague before the bank upload proceeds |

SEPA vs non-SEPA use the rails your bank enabled on the EBICS contract (SCT / XCT as applicable).

## Tips and limitations

- EBICS **H005** only. Private keys and bank execution stay inside the per-tenant security context.
- Statement-only contracts cannot send payments until the bank enables payment orders. Ask up front.
- Do not confuse EBICS email authorize with FinAPI **Authorize** (Web Form) or pain download.
- Related: [Authorize EBICS payments via email](https://help.cortena.ai/guides/integrations/authorize-ebics-payments-email), [Open banking (Yapily)](https://help.cortena.ai/guides/integrations/open-banking-yapily), [Bank reconciliation](https://help.cortena.ai/guides/integrations/bank-reconciliation), [FinAPI](https://help.cortena.ai/guides/integrations/finapi).

## Quick reference

| Task | Where |
| --- | --- |
| Request EBICS at the bank | Bank / relationship manager (statements ± payments, SEPA ± non-SEPA) |
| Enter host details / INI | Settings → Integrations → Banking → EBICS |
| Sign & return INI | Download PDF → sign → send to bank |
| Wait for activation | Daily Cortena check or Check bank activation status |
| Sync accounts | Sync statements + account checkboxes |
| Authorize a payment batch | Payables → Payments → Authorize via email |