Government departments could cut payment costs through API deal

Government departments could help you save tens of millions of pounds a 12 months next the addition of a payments software programming interface (API) on its formal procurement list.

By its Crown Industrial Service’s (CCS) Payment Acceptance Framework, the governing administration has authorized a payment initiation service (PIS) from open banking computer software firm TrueLayer.

Govt departments can now use the engineering to receive payments on the internet devoid of having to use the payment devices owned by banking institutions, consequently cutting down costs and simplifying processes. If this engineering ended up employed throughout governing administration, it would identical millions of pounds a yr.

When persons are creating payments to organisations, these kinds of as the DVLA or local council, they can consent to the govt deducting the money immediate from their account to the government services account. These lender-to-financial institution payments take away card costs and costs from banking institutions for utilizing payment programs. The federal government departments will pay back a little charge per transaction to TrueLayer.

Individuals spending will be able to do so directly to authorities organisations without having the require for a credit score or debit card.

Through its payments API, TrueLayer can be integrated into the web page of govt departments.

Francesco Simoneschi, founder of TrueLayer, explained while a new usually means of payment might look appear like small information, widening the way men and women can make and receive payments from the authorities is extremely critical.

“A important amount of individuals simply don’t have access to credit score and debit cards,” stated Simoneschi. “This can fundamentally lock them out of a great deal of community and small business products and services. Payment initiation solves this dilemma. It is also considerably faster and more cost-effective and, if adopted throughout the general public sector, could preserve taxpayers a massive quantity of funds.

Jan Culshaw, group lead at Crown Industrial Service, reported: “We look forward to functioning with all suppliers and assisting the community sector entry these significant products and services.”

TrueLayer’s appointment to the CCS is for an preliminary three-year time period.

Established up in London in 2016, TrueLayer is a solution of the EU’s Payment Providers Directive (PSD2) and the Competitors and Marketplaces Authority’s (CMA’s) regulations for open up banking in the United kingdom.

These signify banking institutions ought to be able to give third-get together economical solutions suppliers accessibility to consumer facts, if the purchaser agrees, through APIs. It at present delivers two APIs, with a information API as properly as just one for payments.

In Oct 2019, TrueLayer declared that it had turn into a fintech lover with Visa, which made its open banking APIs available by way of its network.