LONDON—The U.K. should use open banking to provide retailers with an alternative to card payments and to improve "clunky" P2P bank transfers, according to a new government-commissioned review.
The independent review into the future of payments calls for a national payments vision and strategy to simplify a well-developed but complex environment, Finextra reported.
Among the specific recommendations is a push to tap into open banking to offer retailers an "alternative payment journey" to Visa and Mastercard, Finextra stated in its analysis.
"While the benefits of cards are greatly appreciated, we heard a high degree of dissatisfaction from merchants regarding what they perceive as increases in scheme fees since interchange fees were forcibly reduced by the regulators," the report states.
In addition to calling for an alternative, the report urges the Payment Systems Regulator complete its work investigating these card scheme fees.
It's ‘Critical’
"We welcome competition and believe that putting customers first is critical – including tackling fraud, ensuring resilience, and delivering great payment experiences that power economic growth,” Visa said in a statement to the publication.
In a similar statement, Mastercard said, “We continuously invest in the latest and most innovative payment technologies, including open banking, playing our part in supporting the UK’s role as a global payments leader.”
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