GoCardless processes over 100,000 open banking payments for savings app Tembo, empowering first-time buyers

London, UK – 6 October, 2025 – Global bank payment company GoCardless has helped Tembo - the leading digital mortgage and savings platform - reach a major milestone, processing over 100,000 open banking payments in a month.  

With UK house prices averaging £291,000 and budgets under pressure, Tembo saw a clear need for a more flexible way to help first-time buyers save. In partnering with GoCardless, Tembo is able to leverage secure and scalable open banking capabilities as one tool to deliver a seamless savings experience through instant money movement. 

Through integrating GoCardless, Tembo customers can save seamlessly using two payment methods: Direct Debit for regular contributions, and GoCardless’ Instant Bank Pay, powered by open banking, for instant top-ups into their Lifetime and Cash ISAs. GoCardless’ ability to provide both types of payments at scale through a single platform means Tembo can give users full control over how and when they save.

With 1 in 3 adults now using open banking, consumer demand for secure and flexible  financial solutions is growing. Tembo’s partnership with GoCardless reflects a forward-looking approach to savings that aligns with this shift, with strong customer uptake: transactions via GoCardless’ Instant Bank Pay grew 400% year-on-year. 

Thanks to this open banking technology and the ability to collect instant payments, Tembo also extended its end-of-tax-year deposit window by six hours longer than competitors, collecting nearly £1 million in that time alone. 

Richard Dana, CEO at Tembo, said: “Since launching, one of our main goals has been to help first-time buyers navigate the ever-difficult housing market, as flexibly as possible. GoCardless has been instrumental in this journey. By introducing both Direct Debit and instant, open banking payments through the GoCardless platform, our customers are able to save smarter than ever.”  

Hiroki Takeuchi, co-founder and CEO at GoCardless, said: “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Tembo as they continue their mission to empower people to take charge of their financial futures. Open banking is playing an increasingly vital role in the savings and investment space, and by offering this technology at scale, we can give consumers greater flexibility as they save, and merchants a cost-effective alternative to traditional card payments."