Commercial Variable Recurring Payments create an opportunity to make collections more responsive, more transparent and better aligned to consumers’ real financial circumstances. For banks and lenders, that means better visibility, earlier intervention and a greater chance of successful outcomes. For consumers and borrowers, it means repayment journeys that can adapt before a temporary issue becomes a longer-term problem.
That matters because collections shape consumer outcomes. When payment technology can flex with affordability in real time, lenders recover more, cut avoidable payment failures and step in to support consumers before a temporary wobble becomes a lasting problem.
That’s why Hope Macy recently announced an investment in the UK Payments Initiative (UKPI), joining some of the UK’s leading banks, payment providers and fintechs in developing commercial Variable Recurring Payments (cVRP). We believe this is a genuine step change for the industry – here’s why.
A new opportunity for smarter collections
The UK has a long-established payments infrastructure that has served businesses and consumers for decades. But consumer expectations, regulatory standards and financial lives have changed. Banks and Lenders now need collections capability that can operate with more immediacy, more context, and more flexibility.
This is where cVRP has such potential. It allows repayment strategies to reflect what is happening now, not what was agreed weeks or months ago. For banks and lenders, that means better visibility and a greater chance of successful collection. For consumers and borrowers, it means repayment journeys that can respond to real-life changes before they go into arrears.
Collections technology should be able to respond to a consumer’s circumstances in real time. cVRP helps make that possible.
What commercial Variable Recurring Payments change
Fundamentally, cVRP is built on Open Banking rails. The VRP mandate means a lender can adjust what is collected and when, based on live account data and the consumer’s affordability position.
That word “variable” is doing some serious heavy lifting here. It means collections can become more intelligent, timelier, and more consumer-aware. Crucially, it gives lenders the ability to design repayment strategies around outcomes, not just payment instructions.
Around ten companies have already committed to UKPI, including some of the biggest names in UK banking and payments. This is not an experiment. It is the UK’s payments industry building its own next-generation collection infrastructure – a payment method, developed here in the UK.
Why this matters for vulnerable consumers
According to the FCA’s Financial Lives 2024 Survey, 49% of UK adults – 25.8 million people – display one or more characteristics of vulnerability. That is not an edge case. That is half the market.
Some in the industry see cVRP primarily as a lower-cost payment method. We see it differently. The combination of Open Banking data and a variable mandate means, for the first time, collections can be designed around vulnerability, affordability and engagement. Sustainable repayment over recovery at any cost. Consumers who stay engaged with their plans rather than disappearing into arrears.
That is not a bolt-on feature. It is the point.
Collecting the right amount, at the right time
Slick Pay, our new payment and collections service, combines Pay by Bank, Account Information Services and future cVRP capability with AI-powered affordability intelligence – fully integrated into the Slick Loan Management System. Affordability assessments, consumer communications, repayment plans and collections strategies all run through the Hope Macy connected platform.
In practice: before repayments are taken, our technology performs an automated affordability assessment on the consumer’s live bank account data. If collecting the full amount would put the consumer under pressure – or the payment would simply fail – the AI evaluates alternatives. Collect some now and more later. Delay by a week to align with payday. Adjust the plan to provide the best outcome. Real business intelligence.
More than a payment rail
For Hope Macy, cVRP is more than a payment rail. It is part of a broader responsible collections model, managed across the whole chain – affordability, communication, collection and strategy – inside the lending platform itself. True embedded finance, optimised for the right reasons.
Our investment in UKPI is a commitment to that future: collections that are intelligent, flexible and aligned with what consumers can afford.
Better decisions. Made earlier. Made properly.