The Payments Vision Delivery Committee (PVDC) — which includes HM Treasury, the Bank of England, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) — has released its Strategy for Future Retail Payments Infrastructure. This represents a significant step forward in implementing the UK Government’s National Payments Vision and shaping the future of payments across the country.
The strategy outlines the future direction for UK retail payments infrastructure, which will be created and implemented by a new Retail Payments Infrastructure Board and an industry-led Delivery Company. These organisations will work together to oversee the modernisation of the UK’s payment systems, ensuring they stay innovative, secure, inclusive, and competitive globally.
Key takeaways for payment firms
The Strategy identifies five strategic outcomes that will guide the development of the UK’s future payments ecosystem:
- Expanding Choice and Innovation – The next generation of infrastructure aims to increase competition and innovation, enabling account-to-account payments at point of sale, supporting Open Banking, and fostering programmable payments and tokenised deposits. The system will also promote financial inclusion while maintaining access to cash and cheque processing.
- Enabling Interoperability Across Digital Money – A major focus is on interoperability between different forms of money, including commercial bank money, e-money, stablecoins, tokenised deposits, and potentially a digital pound. The goal is a frictionless, multi-money ecosystem that encourages innovation and competition.
- Strengthening Trust and Protection – Combatting fraud and financial crime remains a priority. The infrastructure will support advanced fraud prevention capabilities, AI-driven analytics, programmable safeguards, and strong customer authentication, underpinned by clear consumer protection standards.
- Promoting Fair and Open Access – Access to the infrastructure will be transparent, fair, and non-discriminatory, encouraging participation from both established players and new entrants. This approach is designed to boost competition, reduce barriers to entry, and foster innovation across the payments landscape.
- Ensuring Resilience and Sustainability – The strategy reinforces the need for high levels of operational and cyber resilience, assured by the UK’s national technical authorities. It also emphasises financial sustainability through effective funding models and long-term investment planning.
What happens next
The Retail Payments Infrastructure Board, led by the Bank of England, will now oversee the design and delivery of the refreshed infrastructure, with input from industry and end users. The Payments Forward Plan, which will follow, will detail the sequence of upcoming payments initiatives.
The Strategy demonstrates a strong commitment to collaboration between the public and private sectors and emphasises the UK’s goal to provide a world-class payments experience for both consumers and businesses.
Read the full strategy on GOV.UK: Strategy for Future Retail Payments Infrastructure
