PayPoint
PayPoint plc is a British company that provides multichannel payment and retail services across the United Kingdom. Founded in 1996, the company facilitates payments through a nationwide network of convenience stores and offers services including bill payment, mobile phone top-ups, parcel delivery and collection, and Open Banking integrations. Paypoint is publicly listed on the London Stock Exchange.
 | |
| Company type | Public limited company |
|---|---|
| LSE: PAY | |
| Industry | Payment systems |
| Founded | 1996 |
| Headquarters | Welwyn Garden City, England |
Number of locations | 16,098 retail networks (2020) |
Key people | Giles Kerr (Chairman) Nick Wiles (CEO) |
| Revenue |  £324.9 million (2025)[1] |
| £75.1 million (2025)[1] | |
| £50.6 million (2025)[1] | |
| Website | www.paypoint.com |
PayPoint plc is a British company that provides multichannel payment and retail services across the United Kingdom. Founded in 1996, the company facilitates payments through a nationwide network of convenience stores and offers services including bill payment, mobile phone top-ups, parcel delivery and collection, and Open Banking integrations.
Paypoint is publicly listed on the London Stock Exchange.
History
[edit]The PayPoint network was set up in 1996[2] with the aim of enabling customers to load gas and electricity onto their pre-paid energy meters in cash at their local convenience store. Prepayment meters are intended to help customers to manage energy use, thereby helping the environment, and control their spending, thereby enabling to live within their limited means.[3] Typically about 40% of customers use prepayment meters for their electricity and gas: this percentage has remained roughly constant over the last five years.[4] First tested in Northern Ireland, the system was expanded to London in 1997 and in 1998, British Gas prepayment meter customers were able to charge their Quantum smart cards at PayPoint retailers.[2]
Following continued growth and public listing, in 2006, the company became the exclusive cash payment network for the BBC's TV Licence fee.[5] In November 2006 and February 2007, PayPoint acquired online payment service providers Metacharge and SECPay respectively.[6] In September 2010, PayPoint completed the acquisition of Verrus,[7] a pay-by-phone parking payment provider and re-branded in North America and Europe under the brand name, PayByPhone.[8] In May 2014, PayPoint.net and PayByPhone were merged under a single identity, PayPoint Mobile and Online.[9]
In March 2024, PayPoint partnered with Lloyds Bank.[10][11] It was announced that Lloyds Bank would be the main card acquiring partner for PayPoint.[10][11]
Services and operations
[edit]
Payment services
[edit]PayPoint provides multi-channel payment solutions across the United Kingdom, including Open Banking, direct debit, card, and cash based transactions. Its services are widely used for utility bill payments, mobile top-ups, and public transport ticketing, through a network of more than 28,000 retail outlets.[12]
In most cases, the service fees are paid by the payee organizations rather than the customer. A notable exception is cash deposits to Monzo bank accounts, where a £1 fee is deducted from the deposited amount.[13]
Parcel services (Collect+)
[edit]In February 2011, Collect+ a parcel sending and collection service, was launched as a joint venture between PayPoint and Yodel.[14] This service is available through 14,000 of the PayPoint retail network in the United Kingdom and allows customers to collect and send packages at their local convenience store.[15]
On 6 April 2020, PayPoint announced an agreement with Yodel to take full ownership of Collect+.[16][17]
In February 2024, PayPoint partnered with Royal Mail and its Collect+ service.[18][19]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Annual Report 2025" (PDF). PayPoint. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
- ^ a b "Home Energy Top Up". British Gas. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ^ "Keep track of what you use and spend if you have a prepayment meter". EDF. EDF Energy. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
- ^ "The proportion of customers repaying a debt to their supplier using prepayment meters". Ofgem. Archived from the original on 16 February 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
- ^ "BBC appoints PayPoint for 'over-the-counter' contract". BBC. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ^ "PayPoint acquires SECPay Limited". 24 Dash. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ^ "PayPoint buys Verrus". Growth Business. 5 March 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ^ "Presentation" (PDF). Parking Today. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ^ "PayPoint reveals plans for multi-channel future with merged mobile and online business and new group brand" (Press release). GlobeNewswire. Archived from the original on 22 February 2016. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ^ a b "Lloyds Bank, PayPoint strike cards partnership". Reuters. 20 March 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
- ^ a b "Paypoint and Lloyds Banking Group extend cards partnership agreement". MorningstarUK. 2024-03-20. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ^ "Challenger bank Monzo chooses PayPoint for customer cash deposits across UK retail network". PayPoint. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
- ^ "You can now pay cash into your Monzo account!". monzo.com. 21 November 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
- ^ "Paypoint". Retail Times. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
- ^ "Thousands of Collect+ shops to rebrand to Royal Mail after owner buys stake". PA News. 30 September 2025. Retrieved 25 October 2025.
- ^ "PayPoint". www.corporate.paypoint.com. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
- ^ Rees, David (2020-04-06). "PayPoint takes full ownership of Collect+ parcel network". Convenience Store. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ^ "PayPoint and Royal Mail announce partnership". Yahoo Finance. 2024-02-22. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ^ "PayPoint signs multi-year partnership with Royal Mail". MorningstarUK. 2024-02-22. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
