Appointment underpins new strategic direction to strengthen industry representation and modernise stakeholder engagement
Pay.UK, the recognised operator and standards body for the UK’s interbank retail payment systems, has announced the appointment of Ben Taylor to the Pay.UK Board as an industry Non-Executive Director (NED), effective 1 March 2026.
Taylor brings over 20 years of experience in financial services and payments. As Chief Operating Officer of payments automation platform, Modulr, he has deep expertise across payment operations, financial crime oversight, regulatory developments and industry policy. His industry knowledge will be beneficial in supporting Pay.UK on its mission to be the most reliable and trusted way to move money in the UK.
With a new, focused remit, following changes announced by the Payment Vision Delivery Committee at Mansion House 2025, Pay.UK is implementing a strategy to deliver continued reliability, value and efficiency to its participants and everyone who relies on its payment systems. To support this, it has made changes to its Articles of Association that will introduce three additional industry NEDs to its Board, deepening its expertise across the payment ecosystem. This will expand the Board from 12 to 14 directors, consisting of the Chair, Chief Executive Officer, six industry NEDs and six independent NEDs, ensuring a richer mix of industry and technical expertise, and a more comprehensive understanding of emerging opportunities and risks.
Pay.UK is also modernising engagement to initiate a more streamlined, purposeful and proportionate approach with stakeholders. This will see Pay.UK build structured networks of participant, industry and end-user groups. This includes deepening existing relationships with UK Finance, The Payments Association and Innovate Finance as well as building new relationships with organisations such as Money and Mental Health, Money and Pension Service, and Step Change. The Pay.UK Industry and End User Advisory Councils are being retired in line with this update.
Commenting on his appointment, Ben Taylor, Chief Operating Officer at Modulr said: “I am delighted to join Pay.UK at this pivotal time for payments. The industry is rapidly evolving, shaped by regulation, innovation and emerging fraud, cyber and security risks. I look forward to sharing my experience as Pay.UK continues to create resilient, responsive and fraud-proof infrastructure for the future.”
Mark Hoban, Chair at Pay.UK commented: “Ben’s extensive experience in payments and financial services will be invaluable as we navigate the rapidly evolving payment landscape. This appointment, alongside our new strategic direction and updated engagement model, will be instrumental in enabling Pay.UK to foster stronger relationships across the ecosystem, drive more insightful decisions and ultimately create a payment infrastructure that is future-ready for end-users and organisations.”
