UK Cards and Payments: Opportunities and Risks to 2029

UK Cards and Payments: Opportunities and Risks to 2029

Summary

GlobalData’s ‘UK Cards and Payments: Opportunities and Risks to 2029' report provides detailed analysis of market trends in the UK ards and payments industry. It provides values and volumes for a number of key performance indicators in the industry, including cards, credit transfers, cash, direct debits and cheques during the review-period (2020-24e).

The report also analyzes various payment card markets operating in the industry and provides detailed information on the number of cards in circulation, transaction values and volumes during the review-period and over the forecast-period (2025f-29f). It also offers information on the country's competitive landscape, including market shares of issuers and schemes.

The report brings together GlobalData’s research, modeling, and analysis expertise to allow banks and card issuers to identify segment dynamics and competitive advantages. The report also covers detailed regulatory policies and recent changes in regulatory structure.

GlobalData’s ‘UK Cards and Payments: Opportunities and Risks to 2029' report provides top-level market analysis, information and insights into the British cards and payments industry, including -

• Current and forecast values for each market in the British cards and payments industry, including debit, credit and charge cards.
• Detailed insights into payment instruments including cards, credit transfers, cash, direct debits and cheques. It also, includes an overview of the country's key alternative payment instruments.
• Ecommerce market analysis.
• Analysis of various market drivers and regulations governing the British cards and payments industry.
• Detailed analysis of strategies adopted by banks and other institutions to market debit, credit and charge cards.
• Comprehensive analysis of consumer attitudes and buying preferences for cards.
• The competitive landscape of the British cards and payments industry.

• In November 2024, the UK Government introduced the National Payments Vision; a comprehensive plan aimed at promoting the use of electronic payments, improving financial inclusion, and enhancing cashless payment infrastructure. The vision prioritizes the optimization of banking, payment cards, and digital wallets, while also strengthening the existing regulatory framework. The initiative seeks to facilitate seamless account-to-account payments through open banking and explore the potential implementation of a Digital Pound. Furthermore, the plan underscores the significance of infrastructure resilience, fraud prevention, and regulatory alignment-all of which will be overseen by the newly-established Payments Vision Delivery Committee.
• To address the challenges of the current instant payment system and bring it up to date, Pay.UK, the operator of Faster Payments, is developing a shared retail payment infrastructure called the New Payments Architecture (NPA). The NPA will enhance and eventually replace the existing Faster Payments system. The migration of the clearing and settlement process from Faster Payments to the NPA is underway, with support for the ISO 20022 standard. In the UK, the NPA will enable three types of payments: single immediate payments, forward-dated payments, and standing orders. Currently, the NPA is undergoing final testing to ensure seamless integration and functionality, and it is scheduled for launch in 2025.
• Buy now, pay later (BNPL) services are experiencing a surge in popularity; driven by a significant number of tech-savvy millennials and Gen Z users who are more inclined to embrace new payment methods. In November 2024, the US BNPL firm Affirm expanded its operations to the UK. Affirm offers customers interest-free installments for up to three months, as well as interest-bearing monthly payments for up to 12 months. This growing BNPL market has led to the launch of new BNPL companies in the country. For example, in February 2024, American Express introduced its BNPL platform called Plan It. This platform allows credit card holders to convert their purchases into three, six or 12-month installments.

• Card market size in terms of number of cards, value and volume of transactions in the UK along with detailed card segmentation of debit, credit and charge cards available in the country.
• Market sizing and analysis of major payment instruments including cards, credit transfers, cash, direct debits, and cheques.
• Payment market trends and growth for both historical and forecast period
• Competitor analysis with detailed insights into leading card issuers and schemes.
• Comprehensive analysis of consumer attitudes and buying preferences for cards.
• A detailed snapshot of country's key alternative payment brands.

• Make strategic business decisions, using top-level historic and forecast market data, related to the UK cards and payments industry and each market within it.
• Understand the key market trends and growth opportunities in the UK cards and payments industry.
• Assess the competitive dynamics in theUK cards and payments industry.
• Gain insights into marketing strategies used for various card types in UK.
• Gain insights into key regulations governing the UK cards and payments industry.