The service, called Mastercard’s Request to Pay solution, will launch in the first quarter of next year. It will give billers and customers a clear line of communication in the U.K. market, allowing for the sending and receiving of payment requests and payments themselves. Customers can choose to pay in real time or with the card.
Mastercard worked with Exela Technologies, a business process automation (BPA) company, on the technology.
Request to Pay in the U.K. is a service that allows for messaging even before a transaction takes place. It is designed to give a customer more control over the bill-paying process and to provide a bit more wiggle room to take care of pending bills.
On the business end, it will allow for easier communication with consumers and more efficient data collection of customers’ payment preferences and habits, ultimately resulting in easier payment collection in the future.
One of the key components of Request to Pay is the flexibility of its options. A customer will be able to tell a requester if they want to pay the whole bill or a part of it, if they need more time or if they decide not to pay. They can also easily ask to have a conversation with the biller.
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“Our Request to Pay solution is a new payment application that delivers significant benefits for all involved – consumers, businesses and banks – providing more flexibility, speed and transparency of bill payments,” said Gregor Dobbie, CEO, Vocalink, a Mastercard company. “It is designed to accelerate Mastercard’s strategy of offering choice to customers, digitizing all forms of payments, making life simple, seamless and secure for everyone. It has the potential to change the way we settle our day-to-day bills.”
