Worldline awarded Payment Institution Authorisation by the FCA, ensuring business growth in the post-Brexit UK payments landscape

Worldline (Euronext: WLN), a global leader in payment services, announces it has been granted Payment Institution Authorisation[1] by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The licensing confirms Worldline’s ambitions to further reinforce its presence in the UK and enhance its offerings for both local and international merchants operating across the country.

After decades of servicing both UK-based companies and large international merchants’ UK operations with acquiring, acceptance and other complementary solutions, Worldline has seized the opportunity to further strengthen its position in the country.

Worldline will consolidate all merchant customer-related activities under one UK roof and significantly invest in its offering for local customers.

This important milestone demonstrates Worldline’s ability to navigate the complexities of UK regulations for the benefit of its customers. With the Temporary Permission Regime (TPR) due to conclude later this year, Worldline’s new Payment Institution (PI) licence ensures compliance and business continuity for all existing customers.

The new licence also opens the door to domestic processing capabilities, catering to the evolving needs of the market. Worldline’s approach of complete in-house acquiring means that payment facilitation rests entirely within the organisation, fostering transparency and reliability.

An enlarged UK team of Worldline experts will apply in-depth market knowledge to support merchants’ payments operations and cost optimisation. Facilitated by the new domestic licence, merchants can rely on optimised Interchange and Scheme Fees and – with the help of the latest AI – will see further improvement in their authorisation rates.

Enhanced by UK functionalities, Worldline will give customers access to ‘best of breed’ features made available through Worldline’s global platform development programme.

“Worldline is committed to playing an important role in the post-Brexit payments landscape of the UK. I am proud that we have been granted our new licence, which guarantees an even stronger presence in the UK market. Paramount for our local service scope and excellence, it sets us apart from many international competitors by bolstering our presence and enhancing our service capabilities, while providing more choice for UK merchants” says Lee Jones, CEO of Worldline Merchant Services UK.