Comparative analysis of some of the payment systems in European union and Bulgaria

The article analyses part of the payment systems in Europe. The purpose is to overview their special features and the actual application of the payment services in comparative plan in the European Union and Bulgaria. The analysis includes the following payment systems: SWIFT, TARGET, EURO 1, STEP 1, EURO-Giro, MasterCard International, Visa International and the main Bulgarian payment system, operated by "Borika-Bankservice" AD (PLC). The process of integration of Bulgaria with the European payment infrastructures is taken into consideration. The focus is mainly on the payment systems of Bulgaria, Romania, Italy and Germany and for every country comparative values are represented via tables and graphics to visualize the research