Policy paper

Terms of Reference – Payments Vision Delivery Committee

Published 14 November 2024

1. Introduction

The National Payments Vision sets out the government’s ambition for a trusted, world-leading payments ecosystem delivered on next generation technology, where consumers and businesses have a choice of payment methods to meet their needs. Two key foundations need to be in place to deliver this ambition: a clear, predictable and proportionate regulatory framework, and resilient payments infrastructure that supports innovation.

Responsibility for the regulation of UK payments sits across the Bank of England (the Bank), the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR). In addition to their payments regulation roles, these organisations also – through their wider statutory remits and responsibilities – have convening influence over firms in the payments ecosystem. The system of independent regulatory bodies in the UK helps develop deep expertise and respond to complex issues across the payments landscape. However, this needs to be carefully managed across regulators, in order to ensure the overall burden of regulation remains proportionate, and leaves capacity for firms to innovate. This Committee is being established to ensure coordination between the regulators and provide a mechanism to facilitate prioritisation decisions on initiatives.

The Committee is also establishing a Vision Engagement Group, to inform and support on the work of the Committee. This will include representatives from across the sector.

The design phase of the digital pound will continue alongside the work of this Committee, overseen by the existing joint HM Treasury and Bank of England Digital Pound Task Force with input from the CBDC Engagement Forum. The chairs of the Digital Pound Taskforce are also members of the Committee which will ensure coherence across both governance bodies.

2. Objectives

The Payments Vision Delivery Committee will run for an initial period of 12 months and will:

• Ensure regulatory activity is in line with the National Payments Vision (set out in Annex 1).
• Drive coordination on the sequencing of regulatory activity, in line with each regulator’s statutory objectives, with the aim of identifying and minimising overlaps in initiatives and ensuring progress to deliver the National Payments Vision is made within acceptable timelines.
• Establish a Vision Engagement Group to inform and support the work of the Committee.
• Through work led by the Bank and the PSR, examine and refresh the requirements for the UK’s retail payments infrastructure and the governance and funding arrangements needed to deliver this.

3. Deliverables

• Within 6 months (by end Q2 2025): set out an approach for the development and delivery of the UK’s retail infrastructure needs and the required governance and funding model to achieve it, including proposals for the reform of Pay.UK.
• In 9-12 months (by no later than end 2025): building on the above, publish a sequenced plan of broader future initiatives (the Payments Forward Plan), and a recommended monitoring approach.

Work is to be led by the regulators. The Committee will first meet in January 2025, and HM Treasury will consider the future ongoing role of the Committee after the initial period.

4. Governance

The Committee will be chaired by the Director General, Financial Services and Financial Stability, HM Treasury (HMT).

Membership will be comprised of the Director, Financial Services, HMT; Deputy Governor of the Bank of England for Financial Stability; Deputy Governor of the Bank of England for Markets and Banking; the Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Conduct Authority and the Managing Director of the Payment Systems Regulator.

5. Secretariat

A full-time secretariat will be drawn from resource across the three authorities.

6. Vision Engagement Group

The Committee will be supported by a working group, the Vision Engagement Group. This group will be responsible for informing and supporting the work of the Committee.

The Vision Engagement Group will be comprised of senior representatives of the regulators and HMT who will be standing members. The group will also include representatives from the sector to ensure that its work is informed by views from, and progressed in partnership with, the sector.

Sector participation in the Vision Engagement Group will be subject to an open application process and should ensure representation from across the landscape – including users as well as providers of payments services and systems.