Mastercard links up with UK payments fintech Yoyo Wallet in a 'real statement of intent'

• Mastercard-owned payments system, Pay by Bank, is partnering with UK fintech startup Yoyo to allow purchases via its service on the high street for the first time.
• Pay by Bank is an app-led process which connects with Yoyo's API alongside Mastercard's Vocalink platform to let users purchase through their own banking apps without the need for passwords.
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Payments processing giant Mastercard is launching a partnership with UK fintech Yoyo Wallet to help smooth the point of sale experience for users.

Mastercard's Pay by Bank app is powered by Vocalink which means users can purchase goods through their own banking apps without the need for passwords while using Yoyo's API to provide loyalty services.

Founded in 2013 by Michael Rolph, Alain Falys and Dave Nicholson, Yoyo is a payments mechanism which provides users with access to loyalty schemes as part of their app at a variety of merchants and retailers. The fintech processes 3 million transactions a month, has more than 1.5 million users, and over 750,000 monthly active users.

This deal is a "real statement of intent," says Michael Rolph, CEO and cofounder of Yoyo Wallet in an interview with Business Insider at Money 20/20 in Amsterdam.

"The combined Yoyo and Pay by Bank app proposition will provide both customers and retailers with added speed and security at the point-of-sale, as well as an omnichannel payment and loyalty experience that is unrivalled in the market."

It's the next step in Yoyo's integrated payments plans, which could soon include a large European bank joining as a partner in the coming weeks. The company has raised some $60.3 million in funding to date from investors including San Francisco's Hard Yaka.

Jonathan Wood, Senior Vice President, Consumer Applications at Mastercard said: "Pay by Bank app is set to shape the future of payments, as more banks and retailers offer this as an option to shoppers."

In a happy coincidence David Yates, a former Mastercard executive, is joining Yoyo Wallet as chairman.