← Embedded Finance Index 2026

GOV.UK Pay

“Can a single shared government payment platform modernise public-sector payment collection — across cards, open banking, and future rails — for every tier of UK government?”

Founded2016
HQLondon, United Kingdom
IndustryVertical SaaS / Government
The story

GOV.UK Pay launched in 2016 as a shared government payment service built by the Government Digital Service, initially running on Stripe for card processing. After nearly a decade and over £9 billion processed across 135 million transactions, GDS ran a competitive £49m tender in 2025 specifically requiring open banking / pay by bank capability alongside card processing. In June 2026, Adyen was appointed as the new PSP for non-Crown card and pay by bank services, while central government, NHS, and arm's length bodies continue to use Worldpay — reflecting a deliberate multi-PSP architecture segmented by government tier.

Last 12 months
2025-02
2026-06-02
Product timeline
2016
GOV.UK Pay launched by the Government Digital Service (GDS) as the UK government's centralised online payment service for public sector organisations.· banking
2016
Stripe appointed as initial payment services provider for GOV.UK Pay.· pivot
2025
UK government issued a £49m open tender for a new payment services provider, specifically requiring pay by bank (open banking) capability.· pivot
2026
Adyen selected as new PSP for non-Crown card and pay by bank payments, replacing Stripe for approximately 1,000 local authority, armed forces, and police services.· pivot
The stack
1 layer disclosed in GOV.UK Pay’s embedded-finance stack
Payments / PSP
AdyenWorldpay
Accounting gap: none