National systems give way to GENA's vision

GENA (Global Exchange Network Association) is the central international hub for e-invoice operators. Last week, the organization's members gathered in Brussels for the winter edition of the Annual General Meeting.
The Inexchange team, Simon Strandell and Niklas Andersson, report that constructive discussions were held.
It was noted, among other things, that national CTC systems seem to be giving way to the decentralized model advocated by GENA, which is directly crucial to achieving smooth interconnection solutions across borders.

- GENA has a number of working groups set up to deal with specific issues. The big one at the moment is the plans related to ViDA (VAT in the Digital Age). The aim is of course to implement the content of that reform in the best way for the market, says Simon Strandell, Commercial Director at Inexchange.
The purpose of ViDA is largely to simplify business transactions between EU member states by digitizing document exchanges and thereby also establishing more rigorous control over VAT payments.- But that battle now looks to be won. Thanks to the adoption of the ViDA proposal, the authority-driven networks will be short-lived and replaced instead by a decentralized CTC model. GENA has been fighting for this for a long time. The breakthrough that has finally happened removes many obstacles and paves the way for better collaboration," Simon continues. Not only on European soil. GENA has a strategic focus that includes the whole world. One current priority is to harmonize the flow of documents between EU nations and the US. The key issue in this context is formats. GENA is promoting Peppol and wants to believe that it is a viable option on the other side of the Atlantic.

German legal requirement

The agenda in Brussels also included reports from the organization's regional departments, or chapters as they have chosen to call them. The Nordic situation was presented by Flemming Christensen. Unfortunately, there was not much to convey. There is Scandinavian silence from the powers that be when it comes to electronic invoicing.
Then Richard Luthardt, from the German chapter, had more to say.
- The first part of the legislation on mandatory e-invoicing will come into force in Germany from January 1. Richard reported that all service providers are ready for the legal requirement. However, the market is not. Businesses are generally ill-prepared. Dizzily, they say "oh, we have to deal with this". Because so few have started, there is a risk of some chaos," says Simon Strandell.
Niklas Andersson, Head of Products at Inexchange, thinks that the ongoing development in Germany is interesting.
"Germany is suddenly at the top of the list of registered service providers. Something is happening there. It also shows how big Germany is. Now they have as many registered as Norway. If things really take off in Germany, it can certainly increase even more due to its size, Niklas assumes, but also tones down the soaring number slightly:
- If you break it down into a nice average in the number of registered service providers per capita, Norway is probably the highest anyway. But it is interesting in any case. It's a clear marker that it's starting to grow. Because Peppol is not yet very big in Germany.

Super important forum

Inexchange has a long tradition of actively participating in international cooperation between e-invoice operators. Simon Strandell and Niklas Andersson have taken over the baton for some time and continue the meritorious work done by previous representatives.
- GENA is a super important forum for the industry, says Simon Strandell.
- Above all, it gives us a stronger foundation as an industry to influence development and decisions and contribute to the best possible solutions. The work carried out in the organization also promotes cooperation between the private sector and authorities. By highlighting each other's sides, it will be easier to reconcile legislation and technology and thus create great value for the companies out there," he concludes.

Caption
Panel discussion on the importance of VAT, different cultural aspects and its impact on digitalization and change. The panel will be chaired by Christiaan van der Valk.