Starling & Adyen launch tap-to-pay for SME customers

Adyen and Starling have launched tap-to-pay for Starling's UK SME customers, letting businesses accept contactless card payments on eligible smartphones.

The rollout is the first part of a broader payments offering within the Starling app for small and medium-sized businesses. Payment links will later be added to Starling's in-app invoicing tool, enabling businesses to collect card or mobile wallet payments from customers.

The arrangement brings card acceptance into Starling's banking app, allowing merchants to take payments without buying separate card readers. Users can activate tap to pay within minutes and receive settlement into their account the next day.

For many smaller firms, the move reflects growing demand for simple ways to accept in-person and remote payments without adding new hardware or switching between multiple providers. Onboarding, settlement and refunds will all sit within Starling's existing app environment.

Customers paying with tap-to-pay hold a card or digital wallet near the merchant's phone using near-field communication technology. The service also includes accessibility options and allows customers to enter their PIN on the phone when needed.

Card details and transaction information are not stored on the device or on servers. The product is aimed at SMEs that want to accept contactless payments while managing day-to-day banking activity in the same app.

Next phase

The next stage of the partnership will focus on businesses that send invoices. Starling plans to integrate payment links into its free invoicing feature so that customers can pay invoices by card or mobile wallet in a few clicks.

That would extend the service beyond face-to-face transactions into remote payments, an area of growing importance for tradespeople, freelancers and other small businesses that bill clients after work is completed. There will be no monthly fee for tap to pay, with users charged only when they take a transaction.

Businesses will also be able to track their tap-to-pay sales in the app. A flat transaction rate will apply, though no pricing details were disclosed.

SME focus

The launch adds to the competition among financial technology groups and banks seeking to deepen relationships with small-business customers by embedding payment tools into broader banking services. Rather than directing merchants to a separate processor interface, the model keeps payment acceptance inside the bank's app.

Adyen, which works with large multinational merchants including Meta, Uber, H&M, eBay and Microsoft, is expanding its presence in services tailored to smaller businesses through banking partners. For Starling, the arrangement strengthens its offering to business account holders by providing tools that more closely connect payments and cash management.

Nicole Olbe outlined the rationale for the launch.

"Tap to pay technology removes traditional barriers to accepting card payments by turning a smartphone into a secure, user-friendly payment terminal. By combining Adyen's financial technology and banking capabilities with Starling's UK banking infrastructure, we are helping UK SMEs bridge the gap between their payment processing and daily financial management," said Nicole Olbe, UK Managing Director, Adyen.

"This gives businesses the flexibility to accept payments wherever they operate, backed by the confidence of two trusted financial partners," she said.

Starling presented the new service as part of its push to make payment collection simpler for smaller firms that need faster access to funds and less administrative friction. The bank has built its business proposition around digital current accounts and app-based money management tools, and the addition of embedded card acceptance broadens that model.

"Starling is committed to helping small businesses get paid more quickly and easily," said Sami Kade, Director of Customer Solutions at Starling.

"The introduction of tap to pay, followed by payment links later this year, empowers our customers with another tool to help them be good with money. Making the process of getting paid easier allows business owners to redirect their energy towards the thing that matters most: growing and running their business," Kade said.