UK PDC launches £50m fundraise to build domestic retail payments network
UK PDC launches £50m fundraise to build domestic retail payments network #
The UK Payments Delivery Company (UK PDC) has formally launched an equity capital raise targeting approximately £50 million from banks, payment service providers and other financial institutions to build new domestic retail payments infrastructure that could eventually rival Mastercard and Visa.
The fundraise, which opened this week, is open to eligible organisations with a material role in the UK retail payments ecosystem. Participating firms must be authorised, regulated or overseen by the Financial Conduct Authority, the Prudential Regulation Authority or the Bank of England for banking or payment activities. The initial capital is expected to finance the PDC through its incorporation and mobilisation phases until 2028, after which it is intended to operate as a fully shareholder-backed company.
Nineteen of the UK’s largest financial services groups backed the early setup of the PDC in 2025, including the four biggest high street banks, Barclays, Lloyds, NatWest and HSBC, alongside Citi, JPMorgan Chase, Nationwide, PayPal and Wise. Card network giants Mastercard and Visa also participated in early foundational work on the project, despite being the incumbent infrastructure the PDC is partly designed to complement or replace.
Vim Maru, Chief Executive of Barclays UK, is serving as chair-designate of the Delivery Company and has been leading its work. According to City AM, Maru’s team has been liaising with the Bank of England to formalise the PDC’s relationship with the Retail Payments Infrastructure Board, a central bank-chaired body expected to deliver a blueprint for future payments infrastructure early next year.
The PDC traces its origins to the Treasury’s National Payments Vision, published in late 2024, which called for an industry-led body to modernise the UK’s retail payments backbone. Some aspects of the PDC’s future mandate are still being defined through a broader programme of industry collaboration, and further funding rounds are expected beyond the initial £50 million tranche.
The fundraise comes amid political and financial-sector pressure to reduce the UK’s dependence on international card networks and build domestic payment capabilities, a concern that other major economies have pursued through similar initiatives.
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