Payment initiation is the first step in a payment: giving a payment service provider the instruction to move money. A payer initiates a credit transfer by entering details in a banking app or sending a file such as a pain.001; a payee initiates a direct debit or card charge, relying on the payer's prior authorisation; and in open banking a licensed third party can initiate a payment from the payer's account with the payer's consent. The distinction between payer-initiated push payments and payee-initiated pull payments, described under push vs pull payments, affects who carries the risk and what protections apply. In EU and UK law, a "payment initiation service" is a regulated activity in which a provider initiates a payment order at the user's request from an account held elsewhere, performed by a payment initiation service provider (PISP). Initiation is followed by authorisation, payment execution and settlement.