Two of the most important dates in the history of open banking in the United Kingdom?
2 February 2027 — the day the final CMA Retail Banking Market Investigation Order was published — and 14 November 2024: the day the United Kingdom’s HM Treasury released its National Payments Vision (NPV).
With a focus on retail payments, the NPV is a document that outlines the UK government’s vision, ambitions and priorities for the future of payments, alongside a framework and a set of actions to deliver these.
Here at Token.io, we welcome the National Payments Vision and its recognition of open banking's pivotal role in powering A2A payments that drive competition and growth. The economy cannot grow without the payments infrastructure to support it.
But what specifically makes the National Payments Vision — a densely packed 40-page document, released hot off the heels of this month’s Mansion House Speech — so significant (and potentially, unprecedented)?
Let’s break it down.
It’s an historic endorsement of A2A payments
Never before has the UK government — or, quite possibly, any government! — stated its ambition is that “seamless account-to-account payments are developed as a ubiquitous payment method.”
This endorsement demonstrates a clear understanding of the benefits and importance of ensuring A2A payments can be used by every Briton, everywhere they pay.
It sets a bold course for e-commerce
We couldn't agree more: there's a massive opportunity to harness open banking to provide consumers with a genuine choice of e-commerce payment methods to meet their needs.
In the NPV, the government has chosen to make unlocking open banking-enabled payments for e-commerce as a strategic short to medium term priority. We applaud this decision, which is cause for optimism, and could renew momentum and focus towards delivering a commercial model and VRP pilots for e-commerce. However, we still await clarity from regulators on whether banks will be mandated to support commercial VRP.
It recognises the UK must work to keep its reputation as a global leader
With the NPV, the government recognises that a world leading payments environment is vital for a world leading economy.
It also correctly points out that countries such as Brazil —where A2A payment service Pix enjoys 94.5% market penetration and processes 5.7 billion monthly payments — can provide a clear example that there is far greater potential and innovation that can be harnessed from A2A payments.
As the Chancellor highlighted in her recent Mansion House Speech, we can’t take the UK’s status as a global financial centre for granted. In a highly competitive world, the UK must earn that status and work to keep it.
By charting a bold course for UK payments, the NPV has tremendous potential to unlock open banking’s potential and enable the UK to retain its global leadership in payments.
More than a document — it’s a set of decisive actions
The NPV details specific actions the government has taken or will take to make open banking-enabled A2A payments resilient and widely available.
These include:
- Designating the FCA as the lead regulator for open banking
- Instructing all regulators to make open banking a key priority
- Requiring regulators to ensure payments infrastructure can support and enable open banking payments at scale
- Committing to developing a new, regulated “scheme” for open banking by leveraging powers from the upcoming Data Use and Access Bill
- Instructing the FCA to commence work on the development of a commercial model for e-commerce open banking use cases “swiftly”
- Committing to developing consumer protections for open banking payments
- Establishing a Payments Vision Delivery Committee, comprising the Bank of England, FCA and PSR and chaired by HM Treasury. It will coordinate between regulators for the next 9-12 months and be supported by a Vision Engagement Group, consisting of public and private membership.
And much more…
We’ve done the work of analysing and interpreting the National Payments Vision and its impacts for open banking and A2A payments so you don’t have to.
Download our new guide:
Behind the Headlines: Open banking & A2A Payments in the National Payments Vision
to learn what the NPV says and does about:
- VRP and commercial models
- Consumer protections
- Regulators, schemes and frameworks
Plus, learn what the NPV could mean for British consumers, businesses, payment service providers and TPPs.