The PSR wants a payment systems industry that is continuously innovating – whether that’s new services, improvements to existing systems or entirely new products.

We aim to promote innovation in payment systems in the interests of the people and organisations that use them. We want payment systems and the infrastructure they operate on to be responsive to new developments and innovations that benefit the individuals and businesses that use them.

These innovations may be new services, improvements to existing systems or entire new systems. Individuals and businesses should be able to have confidence that innovations come to fruition in a timely manner and deliver benefits.

Our innovation work will include monitoring and tracking innovation developments in the sector, working with stakeholders – including the FCA’s Project Innovate – to identify barriers to existing or potential innovations, and, where appropriate, take action to remove such barriers.

Payments Strategy Forum

The Payments Strategy Forum (the Forum) was created to develop a strategy for payment systems in the United Kingdom. It was announced by the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) in Policy Statement 15/1 published in March 2015.

The Forum led on a process to identify, prioritise and help to design initiatives which make payment systems work better for those that use them. The Forum consisted of an independent chair, service-user representatives and payment service providers. They were appointed jointly by the PSR and the Forum chair following a public nomination process during the summer of 2015.

The Bank of England (BoE), the Prudential Regulatory Authority (PRA), the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the PSR were observers on the Forum.

Examples of innovation

Innovation in UK consumer electronic payments, a joint study by Ofcom and the PSR, includes examples of innovation in payments:

  • the development of digital wallets by mobile operators
  • handset manufacturers and online platform providers collaborating with card networks
  • Mobile players seeking to enter payments markets through contactless point-of-sale devices
  • the development of Paym and Zapp