GoCardless launches Recurring Pay by Bank as part of new UK payment scheme

New account-to-account scheme strengthens UK payments sovereignty and introduces the first viable, low-cost alternative to legacy card duopolies

LONDON, 2 JUNE 2026 – Bank payment company GoCardless has backed the launch of a new industry-led scheme designed for the next generation of open banking payments. 

Banks, building societies and fintechs have invested in scheme operator UK Payments Initiative (UKPI), which today has announced the scheme is now live. This paves the way for the introduction of Recurring Pay by Bank, GoCardless’ open banking-powered payment solution that enables recurring, flexible and automated bank payments. 

The new scheme supports the UK’s National Payment Vision to foster greater competition, innovation and resilience by driving widespread adoption of account-to-account (A2A) payments. Cards still dominate UK retail payments, comprising 84% of spending by turnover and costing businesses £1.5bn in fees through the near-duopoly of Visa and Mastercard. Recurring open banking payments represent the first viable, low-cost alternative to this legacy system, and an opportunity to build a set of independent, domestic payment rails. 

The substantial savings, combined with instant authorisation, flexibility, and bank-grade security, make the new payment method highly appealing to both merchants and payers. GoCardless research indicates that:

• 89% of recurring revenue businesses believe the technology would significantly improve cash flow, while 91% expect it to reduce operational costs

• 49% of businesses intend to be early adopters

• 38% of consumers would be open to trying recurring Pay by Bank, rising to 60% of Gen Z

With the scheme now live, recurring open banking payments can be used for payments to public sector bodies, utilities, charities, financial services, and more. 

Recurring Pay by Bank 

In March, GoCardless completed the first recurring open banking transaction during the industry’s ‘live testing’ phase, processed on behalf of Jellyfish Energy. While the wider industry rollout is still in its infancy, GoCardless has designed Recurring Pay by Bank to overcome early-stage market challenges, offering businesses a highly effective platform they can confidently use today. Key features include: 

• Full payer coverage from day one through ‘intelligent routing’ that automatically shifts payers to Direct Debit if open banking isn’t available.

• A ‘bank guess’ feature: the GoCardless platform has seen 80% of UK payers over the past 15 years. This data is leveraged to auto-fill payment details and create a smoother checkout experience.

• Industry-leading uptime, ensuring reliable service -- a critical factor for early adopters and a common concern across the industry.

Shaun Puckrin, Chief Product Officer at GoCardless, said: “For a long time, the UK has been waiting for a genuine alternative to traditional card payments. By launching an industry-wide scheme for recurring Pay by Bank, we will bring real competition to a market that’s been dominated for decades by a costly card duopoly. This milestone establishes the UK as a country that owns its financial future. We're creating payments infrastructure that is modern, competitive, and free from over-reliance on external networks. Built on APIs for easy instruction and real-time execution, it is ideally placed to become the foundation of agentic commerce -- where AI agents, automated systems, and instant payments converge. 

It's a response to enormous market demand, and a shift that will change the way money moves for everyone."

Richard Koch, Managing Director at UKPI, said: “The launch of this scheme is a significant step forward as we build a faster, fairer payment ecosystem that unlocks genuine choice for businesses and consumers. Having GoCardless at the table brings 15 years of account-to-account expertise right into the heart of this initiative. Their experience is vital as we move forward, helping us turn open banking payments into a practical tool that people will trust and use every single day.”

Notes to Eds. 

For more information, please contact: 

press@gocardless.com 

About the research

The research cited in this release was conducted by Opinium (Insights with Impact), an independent insights agency. The business survey was carried out online between 2nd and 15th December 2025 among 500 senior decision makers responsible for accepting payments or setting payment strategies in UK businesses with 10 or more employees. Out of the 500 respondents, 489 accept recurring payments.

A separate consumer survey was conducted online between 2nd and 5th December 2025. It surveyed a sample of 2,000 UK adults, nationally representative by age, gender, region, economic activity, and social grade.

About GoCardless 

GoCardless is a global bank payment company. Over 100,000 businesses, from start-ups to household names, use GoCardless to collect and send payments through direct debit, real-time payments and open banking. GoCardless processes US$130bn+ of payments annually, across 30+ countries; helping customers collect and send both recurring and one-off payments, without the chasing, stress or expensive fees. We use AI-powered solutions to improve payment success and reduce fraud. And, with open banking connectivity to over 2,500 banks, we help our customers make faster, more informed decisions. 

We are headquartered in the UK, with additional offices in Australia, France, Ireland, Latvia and the United States. For more information, please visit www.gocardless.com and follow us on LinkedIn @GoCardless.