BoE Makes an Example of Vocalink in £11.9M Compliance Crackdown
Hey Payments Fanatic!
In a first-of-its-kind move, the Bank of England has fined Vocalink, Mastercard’s UK payments arm, £11.9 million for failing to fix systemic weaknesses flagged two years ago.
The penalty casts a spotlight on risk management standards at one of the core engines behind Bacs, Faster Payments, and the UK’s ATM network.
BoE doesn't want to play. It’s a signal from the BoE that critical payments infrastructure is under sharper scrutiny, and non-compliance comes with real consequences.
Scroll down for an overview of what this means across the broader ecosystem and additional updates from the payment scene.
Cheers,
INSIGHTS
Checkout.com has evolved from a quiet infrastructure player into a global Payment powerhouse.
NEWS
🇪🇸 Getnet enhances public transportation in Madrid with contactless payment technology. This initiative is part of a broader effort, including the renewal of CRTM’s payment gateway contract, aimed at expanding the use of digital payment systems in public transportation.
🇬🇧 Mastercard’s Vocalink hit by £11.9mn fine for risk management failings. The BoE said that the fine reflected Vocalink’s failure to comply with the central bank’s requirement for it to fix several weaknesses in its systems and controls identified by supervisors by February 2022.
🇦🇿 Mastercard and PashaPay partner to expand cross-border payments. The companies aim to work together on enhancing cybersecurity, digital identity, fraud prevention technologies, and cross-border payments. The partnership will also involve the issuance of Mastercard and m10-branded digital payment products.
🇸🇪 Zimpler introduces ID+: A next-gen identification layer for digital payments. Zimpler ID+ enables businesses to offer biometric identification and instant onboarding for their customers, streamlining user verification across devices, sessions, and payment flows.
🇦🇺 ANZ Worldline eyes more capital to address loan breach and funding. Company reports filed with ASIC this month indicate that the joint venture between ANZ and French payments specialist Worldline SA has experienced a significant deterioration in bottom-line performance and will require additional capital support to continue operating under its current business plan.
🇺🇸 Nayax to IPO on Wall Street. Nayax has raised approximately USD 145 million (NIS 462 million) gross for the company and its shareholders and sold shares worth around half of the amount, for NIS 205 million. Read more
🇲🇽 Mercado Pago launches a new solution and takes another step toward professionalizing Mexican SMEs. According to the firm, this new service allows for inventory integration, cash control, and access to performance metrics to reduce losses and improve sales and employee management.
🇺🇸 Venmo launches Big 12 college football debit cards. With the Venmo Debit Card, users can activate limited-time 15% cashback offers from some of their favorite brands in the app, allowing them to score more on everyday purchases in-store and online.
🇷🇴 Visa launches ePOSibil program to boost adoption of digital solutions and card payments by Romanian SMEs. The program is being implemented in partnership with local banks, together with IMM Romania, and aims to support retailers in adopting modern payment solutions to consolidate and develop their business.
🇺🇸 BNY Mellon will have custody of Ripple’s new stablecoin as institutional interest in crypto swells. The partnership should enhance regulatory compliance for Ripple, the issuer of Ripple USD (RLUSD), and boost institutional credibility for the company as well as the fast-growing stablecoin industry.
🇵🇪 Paysafe launches PagoEfectivo wallet and expands payment options in Peru. Consumers in Peru already trust PagoEfectivo for everything. With the launch of our new digital wallet, we’re giving them a more convenient way to pay, one that reflects Paysafe’s commitment to powering the experiential economy, said Bruce Lowthers, CEO of Paysafe.
🇬🇧 Klarna supports new consumer protections in upcoming BNPL rules. Buy Now, Pay Later regulation in the UK is finally expected to be implemented by the second half of 2026. Klarna has supported regulation since 2020 and is well-prepared, already operating under FCA supervision and offering regulated credit.
🇬🇧 Dext and Airwallex collaborate to launch Dext Payments. By integrating Airwallex’s payment infrastructure into Dext’s platform, Dext Payments will provide a unified solution for managing supplier and expense payments, payroll, and simplifying the process of receiving payments directly from invoices.
GOLDEN NUGGET
What is a 𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐎𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 — by CellPoint Digital 👇 Created by Arthur Bedel 💳 ♻️
As digital commerce becomes more fragmented across channels, regions, and payment preferences, merchants need more agility and intelligence in how they manage payments.
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐏𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐎𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦?
► A Payment Orchestration Platform is an end-to-end infrastructure that integrates multiple PSPs, acquirers, and fraud tools through a single API to optimize every stage of the payment lifecycle — from checkout to settlement
► It centralizes payment operations and enables merchants to scale, adapt, and automate their payment stack intelligently
𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬:
→ Smart routing engine across PSPs (Stripe, Payplug, Checkout.com, Getnet...)
→ Unified reconciliation, clearing, billing, and settlement
→ Central reporting & analytics
→ Token vault (VGS) and 3rd-party fraud solutions (Forter)
→ Dynamic presentment and business rule engine
𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤?
► At checkout, the POP receives an API call from the merchant platform containing decision attributes
► It dynamically presents the best payment methods to the consumer, validates the payment data, applies business logic (e.g. 3DS or fraud review), routes the transaction to the optimal provider, and captures & settles funds — all in real time
𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤?
At a high level, a Payment Orchestration Platform acts as the intelligent conductor of every transaction. Here's a closer look at the flow:
► Checkout Initiation
The consumer triggers a payment via the merchant’s frontend—on web, mobile, app, or POS
► API Call to POP
A single API call sends the transaction data and business rules to the orchestration platform for processing
► Dynamic Presentment Engine
The POP determines which payment methods to show, based on geo, device, order value, user profile, and business logic
► User Payment Selection
The customer selects their preferred method from the tailored set of options
► Validation & Risk Checks
The orchestration platform validates inputs, applies tokenization, invokes 3DS or custom fraud checks, and ensures regulatory compliance
► Intelligent Routing
Based on historical performance, cost, geography, and approval rates, the transaction is routed in real time to the optimal PSP or acquirer
► Authorization & Capture
The POP manages the capture of funds from the provider, including fallback routing in case of failure
► Settlement & Reconciliation
Transactions are aggregated, settled, and reconciled centrally — with all reporting unified across multiple providers and geographies
→ As payments become more dynamic and distributed, orchestration is the infrastructure layer helping merchants simplify complexity and scale with confidence
Source: CellPoint Digital
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