Web and mobile payments start-up Stripe launches in UK
Online and mobile payments start-up Stripe has launched in the UK, providing a rival service to PayPal and Visa.
The start-up, which was first tipped for a UK rollout earlier this year, has already reached “significant” scale in the US, processing millions of dollars daily for companies including Foursquare, Heroku and Reddit.
The service is designed to render online payments simpler for businesses to accept, claiming those using it can now start accepting card payments online and in mobile apps within minutes.
The move means UK businesses no longer need to go through time-consuming compliance and accounts set ups to facilitate online payments. Instead it can accept all major card types including Visa, MasterCard and American Express, while retaining full control over the checkout experience on their website.
The start-up has also launched multiple currencies to support its extension to the UK, letting businesses charge in US dollars, British pound sterling and Euros.
Kieran O'Neill, founder of online personal shopping service Thread.com, said: "Having used and evaluated countless payment services over my last three businesses, Stripe is by far the easiest solution available. We were able to begin accepting live payments in a matter of minutes and the integration for Thread.com took a fraction of the time it's taken previously."
Meanwhile Virgin Pure, part of Virgin Group, has seen sales “tripling” on a daily basis as a result of using Stripe to drive subscriptions take-up.
Virgin Pure interim CEO Joe Cohen said: “Stripe really stood out as the best product when we were choosing a new payment solution and it was exceptionally quick and easy to integrate. Having full control over our checkout experience has made a big difference.”
It has also partnered with UK platforms Kashflow and FreeAgent, along with Shopify, Bigcommerce, Squarespace, BigCartel, and Wave.
Wave CEO Kirk Simpson said: "Between chasing customers for payments and finding simple ways to accept and track customer payments, getting paid is a hassle for businesses. With payments powered by Stripe, we’re taking all the pain out of this process.
“Now, small business owners using Wave in the UK can get set up to accept card payments on their invoices almost instantly. Our customers are overcoming the obstacles surrounding the payment process and getting paid faster."
Stripe is recruiting more people for its newly launched London office, with the view to building a stronger footprint in Europe and Australia as part of its global expansion strategy.
The news follows the launch of mobile payment start-up CloudZync, which is being used by brands including restaurant chain Fratelli, to unite loyalty card data while allowing customers to pay for meals directly form their mobile phone.