Welwyn Garden City, 3 November 2025: PayPoint is proud to announce that it has won “Best Sector Initiative” at the Open Banking Expo Awards 2025, for its Open Payment PayIn innovation. The solution was developed for a major utility client to provide a secure, real-time refund disbursement platform, powered by Open Banking.
PayIn was developed in response to challenges in the utility sector around slow, cheque-based refunds. It provides a digital alternative to cheques, reducing time delays and inconvenience for customers, whilst reducing transaction costs and fraud risk for suppliers.
The proposition to get payments out to customers, in response to the government's AFP scheme, was launched in 2023 and actioned as a replacement to cheques in 2025. It has now been used to issue over £1 million of utility refunds. 88% of all refunds have been delivered direct to customers bank accounts using Open Banking, with transactions taking place immediately - the fastest transaction took place just 37 seconds after issue.
Through the partnership customers can also collect cash at over 30,000 PayPoint outlets nationwide. PayPoint’s PayIn service remains the only UK solution to blend Open Banking with in-store cash redemption, ensuring inclusivity that supports both digital and cash-preferred users.
The solution, which is accessible anytime, reduces reliance on banking hours, with 23% of transactions taking place outside banking opening hours whilst also eliminating the need for customers to share sensitive bank details, improving transaction security.
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