Santander UK, one of the UK’s largest retail and commercial banks, has published new research calling for a consumer-first approach to the evolution of payments across the country.
The bank has launched its latest report in response to growing concerns among consumers that future payments innovation must prioritise fraud prevention and security above all else. The findings underline a pressing need to shift industry focus away from speed and novelty, and towards robustness, protection and trust.
The new report, titled Transacting Tomorrow: The role of retail payments in powering UK growth, highlights that the majority of UK consumers feel the current payments system works effectively, but they want innovations that solve what they perceive as “the real gaps”.
More than half of those surveyed said fraud and loss of funds are their biggest worries when making payments. As a result, the research stresses that any future payments infrastructure should embed fraud prevention as a core design requirement, such as enabling the slowing of suspicious payments.
The findings also show significant public caution around new payment modalities. According to the report, 63% of adults are very unlikely to use digital assets for payments, referencing volatility, privacy issues and a lack of protections. Meanwhile, 55% of respondents said they had not heard anything about the Bank of England’s digital pound, and among those who had, many viewed it as unnecessary or confusing. Only one in five consumers believe completely new ways to pay are needed.
In addition, the report outlines ten policy priorities to deliver a safe, innovative and sustainable payments framework. These include designing out fraud, modernising legacy infrastructure, ensuring commercial viability of new models, backing tokenisation over retail central bank digital currencies, supporting regulators with a pro-innovation mandate, and maintaining strong government leadership across the National Payments Vision.
Paul Horlock, chief payments officer, Santander UK, said, “As our data shows, banks remain the most trusted advocates in driving change and shaping consumer behaviour. We must take these responsibilities seriously. The whole ecosystem from government, regulators, banks and fintechs must build a model that meets consumer demand and protects users, while also ensuring the commercial viability of future ways to pay.
“To realise the full potential of the progress that we’ve made, more needs to be done to ensure realisation of the holistic government strategy recognises the vital role payments play in driving growth within the Financial Services Growth & Competitiveness Strategy.
“At the same time, a more pro-innovation stance from regulators is essential and public political backing for that stance is vital if the UK is to stay ahead globally. The priorities that we have set out must create a payments ecosystem that drives UK growth, protects consumers, and keeps the country at the forefront of global financial innovation.”
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