NatWest Group has taken a step forward in the payments industry by announcing a strategic minority investment in Icon Solutions.
This strategic move underscores NatWest’s commitment to accelerating its payments modernisation agenda, further cemented by the selection of Icon Solutions’ Icon Payments Framework (IPF) in September of the previous year.
Icon Solutions, founded in 2020, has introduced the innovative IPF, a low code payment framework designed to empower business payment experts in creating leading industry workflows. This framework also enables software engineering teams to swiftly extend and forge highly customizable integrations with existing bank systems, showcasing the firm’s pivotal role in facilitating cutting-edge payments solutions.
The investment into Icon Solutions is poised to hasten NatWest’s strategic objectives within the payments sector, offering customers more choice and laying the groundwork for future innovations in payments. It marks a critical component of the bank’s payment platform modernisation strategy, aiming to enhance its response to the swiftly evolving payment market through leveraging existing partnerships and strategic investments.
Chief Payments Officer at NatWest, Mark Brant, highlighted the investment’s importance, stating, “Our relationship with Icon Solutions has already helped us to bring our payments estate to life. This investment is fundamental to the delivery of our modernisation in payments technology, which will enable us to better serve our customers and to remain at the forefront of the payments industry.” He further underscored NatWest’s commitment to shaping the future of the payments landscape by embracing new technologies and improving customer experiences.
Tom Kelleher, Co-founder and Director of Icon Solutions, reflected on the collaboration’s journey, stating, “NatWest and Icon have been on a journey together since 2019 to modernise payments at the bank, inspired and led by Ian Povey and Mark Brant. We have a common belief in the adoption of low-code technologies to deliver new payments systems quickly and safely, with a significantly lower cost profile.” Kelleher’s comments underline the mutual dedication to leveraging innovative technologies for the enhancement of payment systems, ensuring safety, immediacy, and flexibility for users.
As NatWest Group continues to solidify its position as a leader in payments innovation, its investment in Icon Solutions represents a significant milestone in its journey towards delivering cutting-edge payment solutions to its customers, fostering a future of safe, immediate, and flexible payment services.