Volt to expand payment solutions in the UK after receiving an EMI license

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) recently granted an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license to yet another company — Volt. The approval will allow the digital payments provider to improve and expand its cash management offerings.

Furthermore, it will allow it to offer its Connect product, which provides virtual accounts for merchants. The accounts allow for direct account-to-account payments, meaning that merchants will be able to get direct payments from customers, alongside real-time payment confirmation.

How can Volt’s services help UK businesses?

Getting an EMI license is a big step for Volt, as it will allow it to offer virtual accounts as a standalone product. This will particularly benefit enterprises that have developed a need for efficient fund management and reconciliation processes.

For example, companies like online travel agencies will be able to use virtual accounts to initiate bulk payouts to suppliers in various jurisdictions.

Tom Greenwood, the CEO of Volt, stated that the UK and Europe are integral markets for his company’s business. With that being the case, he and his team are delighted that the FCA has decided to grant them an EMI license.

The license will allow Volt to go even further in expanding its operations and business, becoming an account provider, a payment initiator, and more. This will broaden its product set, but also allow it to adapt and improve its broad commercial offering. “We have already seen a number of our key customers benefiting from the capabilities the license brings,” he added.

Volt’s services will give it an edge in a highly competitive UK market

Last year, in 2023, Volt managed to successfully expand its services in Australia, which encouraged the firm to try and make the same move in the UK. Now, with the license in hand, Volt is ready to enter the UK market in full.

Moving forward, the company plans to address several challenges that businesses in the payments management sector have been experiencing for a long time, including the lack of visibility and limited control.

It is worth mentioning that the UK’s market is highly competitive, and recently, one firm in the online payments sector — a US-based Public.com — announced that it has given up on trying to win over its share of the market. The firm has found the UK market to be too competitive and difficult to handle, meaning that even Volt will have a difficult task ahead in carving its own share of the local market.

However, Volt’s solutions allow merchants to track payments more effectively, improve their banking experience, and identify potential issues. With that said, chances are that these and other benefits might provide users with a unique experience that will cement Volt’s presence in the country.

Especially since Bottomline’s study from last year revealed that a pain point that half of British businesses encounter is the lack of control and visibility in payment processing. With Volt promising to ease these issues, the company and its services are likely to be noticed right away.