The Payments Association stands as a cornerstone of the United Kingdom’s financial ecosystem, representing more than 250 organizations that drive the modern economy. At the heart of this evolution is Emma Banymandhub, who has recently ascended to the role of CEO after a transformative period as Chief Operating Officer. Her journey through the organization has been marked by a significant scaling of operations, including the expansion of PAY360 into the nation’s premier payments event. This discussion explores the delicate balance of maintaining influential domestic policy ties with the Bank of England and the FCA while simultaneously executing an ambitious strategy to export the association’s successful operational model to burgeoning international markets.
You recently transitioned to the top leadership role after overseeing a tripling of staff and the scaling of major industry events. What specific management strategies did you employ to maintain organizational culture during this rapid expansion, and how will those tactics evolve in your new position?
Scaling an organization requires more than just adding names to a payroll; it demands a preservation of the passion that fuels our 250 member organizations. When I joined in 2023, I immediately felt the weight of our mission, and tripling our headcount since then meant we had to be incredibly intentional about how we integrated new voices without losing our core identity. We focused on a strategy of decentralized empowerment, ensuring that as our team grew, the creative energy behind major milestones like PAY360 remained vibrant and focused. As I move from the COO role I held in April 2025 into the CEO position, my focus shifts from the mechanics of growth to the stewardship of our long-term vision. I plan to use the same transparency that guided our internal expansion to foster a sense of ownership among every staff member, ensuring they feel the pulse of the industry in every meeting.
There is a current mandate to export the association’s operational model to international markets while influencing domestic policy. How do you balance the resource demands of global expansion against the need for deep engagement with regulators like the Bank of England and the FCA?
The challenge of domestic excellence versus global expansion is not a zero-sum game, but rather a symbiotic relationship where one strengthens the other. Our deep-rooted history in the UK, dating back to 2008, provides us with a robust framework that regulators like the Bank of England, the FCA, and HM Treasury have come to respect and rely upon. By maintaining these high-level domestic engagements, we create a “gold standard” blueprint that becomes incredibly attractive to international markets looking for proven governance models. We manage resources by treating our international push as a logical extension of our advocacy, ensuring that the insights we gather abroad eventually flow back to benefit our UK stakeholders. This dual-focus strategy allows us to protect the interests of our domestic members while simultaneously opening new doors for them on the world stage.
The strategic partnership and investment from the Nineteen Group signals a new chapter for the organization. What specific milestones do you aim to achieve with this capital, and how does this collaboration change your approach to facilitating networking and market intelligence for your member organizations?
The investment from the Nineteen Group acts as a powerful catalyst, allowing us to sharpen our tools for market intelligence and community building. This capital is being deployed to enhance the sophisticated networking platforms our members rely on, turning simple interactions into high-value strategic alliances. We are now in a position to deliver even more granular data and insights through our digital channels, ensuring that our 250 member companies are always a step ahead of market shifts. This partnership also allows us to breathe new life into our physical events, making the sensory experience of networking—the handshake, the spontaneous debate, the shared vision—more impactful than ever before. We see this as a turning point where we transition from being a traditional trade body to a modern, data-driven intelligence hub.
With eight distinct working groups covering areas from digital currencies to financial crime, the scope of payments oversight is vast. Which of these sectors requires the most urgent policy intervention right now, and what step-by-step framework do you use to synthesize member feedback into advocacy?
While all eight groups—including ESG, inclusion, and open banking—are vital, the intersection of digital currencies and financial crime currently feels like the most pressing frontier for policy intervention. The speed of innovation in cross-border payments and digital assets is breathtaking, and our members are looking for clear, predictable regulatory guardrails to operate safely. To synthesize their feedback, we employ a rigorous feedback loop: we first gather raw data from our stakeholder groups, then stress-test these ideas against the practical realities of merchant payments. This process ensures that when we sit down with HM Treasury, we aren’t just bringing complaints; we are bringing actionable, member-vetted solutions. It is a methodical approach that turns the diverse noise of 250 companies into a single, resonant voice that policymakers cannot ignore.
Taking the helm after a five-year period of stable leadership presents unique challenges regarding continuity. How do you plan to build upon the existing strategic foundation while introducing your own vision for the future of merchant payments and cross-border transactions?
Following five years of steady leadership under the previous CEO is a responsibility I take with immense seriousness, as it provides a rock-solid foundation upon which to innovate. My vision is to build on that stability by leaning more heavily into the complexities of merchant payments and the friction points of cross-border transactions. I want to see our association become even more agile, reacting to shifts in the global economy with the same speed that our fintech members do. This means being more proactive in our advocacy and ensuring that the strategic foundation we’ve built becomes a springboard for more daring, forward-thinking initiatives. Continuity doesn’t mean standing still; it means taking the momentum of the last half-decade and directing it toward the most disruptive and rewarding corners of the payments world.
What is your forecast for the UK payments sector?
The UK payments sector is on the verge of a significant structural shift where open banking and digital currencies will move from the periphery to the very center of daily commerce. We are entering an era where transactions will be more invisible, more secure, and more integrated into the consumer experience than we ever imagined back in 2008. I anticipate that the next few years will see the UK cementing its position as the global laboratory for payments innovation, driven by a regulatory environment that is becoming increasingly sophisticated and collaborative. Our role will be to ensure that as the technology evolves, the human element—trust, inclusion, and safety—remains the top priority for every stakeholder involved. The future is not just about faster payments; it is about a more equitable and efficient financial world for everyone.