GoCardless Alternative for UK Businesses: Pay by Bank Payments

Pay by Bank payments have come a long way in the UK. According to independent economic analysis commissioned by Open Banking Limited, open banking has already delivered an estimated £8.3bn in cumulative benefit to the UK economy, with annual benefits expected to reach £7.4bn within five years. At full maturity, that opportunity could grow to £43bn a year. It is no longer a niche, it is fast becoming the way businesses get paid. 

If you are exploring GoCardless alternatives in the UK, here is a straightforward look at what is out there.

What to consider before choosing a provider

The right provider depends on your payment mix. Some businesses need purely recurring billing. Others need one-off payments, deposits, retainer top-ups, or a mix of all of the above. It is also worth thinking about how much technical setup you are willing to take on, and whether you want your customers to go through a Direct Debit mandate every time.

With that in mind, here are some of the main options.

Atoa

Atoa is a UK-based, FCA-authorised Pay by Bank provider built for businesses of all sizes that need both recurring and one-off payments, without locking customers into a Direct Debit mandate. No developer resource required, payments settle instantly, and it works with all major UK banks.

• Send a payment link by SMS or email, and your customer picks how they want to pay: bank transfer or card, with real-time confirmation either way.
  
  
• Need to charge someone again later? Card on file stores their details securely with their permission, so you are not chasing anyone.
  
  
• Big invoice? Customers can pay in parts, which makes life easier for everyone. It’s a practical for high-value transactions, giving businesses flexibility at every order size.
  
  
• Handles everything from recurring payments and monthly retainers to one-off jobs and deposits, all in one place.
  
  
• Plugs straight into their existing accounting setup (Xero, QuickBooks, and Sage) so your accounts stay tidy without extra work.
  
  
• ISO 27001 and SOC 2 certified, so security is built in at every level

Best for: UK businesses of any size that want flexible, secure, instant payments across varied use cases, without the complexity

Stripe

Stripe is one of the most widely used payment platforms in the world, supporting cards, digital wallets, and bank transfers across 46 countries. It is a large, feature-rich product with strong eCommerce integrations.

• Supports Pay by Bank alongside cards and digital wallets.
  
  
• Highly customisable with a powerful API and a large library of integrations.
  
  
• Pricing can add up at higher volumes, and the platform can feel complex for simpler use cases.

Best for: eCommerce businesses and platforms needing global reach and multiple payment methods

TrueLayer

TrueLayer is an open banking specialist offering API-based payment infrastructure across the UK and Europe. It is widely used by fintechs and businesses building tailored payment experiences.

• Supports instant bank payments, account verification, and recurring payments.
  
  
• Highly flexible but requires a development team to implement and maintain.
  
  
• Not designed for businesses wanting a no-code, out-of-the-box setup.

Best for: fintechs and larger businesses with in-house technical resource

Yapily

Yapily is an open banking infrastructure provider connecting businesses to banks across the UK and Europe through a developer-facing API. It covers payment initiation and account data services. 

• Strong bank coverage across the UK and Europe.
  
  
• Built primarily for platforms and developers rather than end users.
  
  
• No ready-made merchant-facing tools.

Best for: businesses building open banking into their own platforms

Finexer

Finexer is a newer FCA-regulated open banking platform focused on the UK market, covering payment initiation, variable recurring payments, and bank account verification.

• Covers 99% of UK banks with fast deployment times.
  
  
• Usage-based pricing with no fixed monthly fees.
  
  
• Geared towards businesses with specific open banking infrastructure needs.

Best for: UK businesses needing reliable open banking coverage and technical flexibility

Which one fits your business?

Stripe and the API-first providers like TrueLayer and Yapily make sense for businesses with technical teams and complex integration needs. Finexer suits those focused specifically on open banking infrastructure. For UK businesses that want flexible, instant Pay by Bank payments across both recurring and one-off use cases without a heavy setup, Atoa is a strong GoCardless alternative UK businesses with varied payment needs tend to gravitate towards.

Book a demo with Atoa to see how it works for your business.