NatWest has launched an upgrade to its Open Banking payments service Payit that will allow businesses to send payments directly to customers without needing their bank details.

The move aims to replace the use of cheques and bank transfers when sending money to customers, allowing for instant payments to be made when issuing refunds or customer service payments, as well as for specific uses such as compensation payments and emergency cash requirements.

The enhancement, which uses the Faster Payments framework, which allows payments of up to £250,000 to be made, with the bank aiming for this process to take a matter of seconds.

NatWest said the Payit solution presents a marked improvement on the current cheque cashing process where consumers often have to visit a branch to access the funds.

The bank has also announced today that transport provider Northern is the latest UK business to offer Payit as an option for its customers.

Payit launched in early 2020, initially allowing businesses to collect payments from customers online using Open Banking. Today’s announcement adds a feature that allows businesses to send a payment to consumers, with NatWest claiming it is the first UK bank to allow parties to pay each other using this technology.

NatWest says it aims to continue innovating Payit further throughout 2021, with plans to enhance its Open Banking compatibility by launching an API proposition, allowing merchants to integrate Payit directly with their own technology infrastructures.

James Hodgson, head of commercial payments, Payit by NatWest said: “The need for businesses to send their customers money often occurs at the most crucial moments, and yet the typical methods can be slow, inefficient and expensive.

“We’re aiming to transform that experience with Payit, which now allows businesses to send payments that are credited to customer accounts in a matter of seconds, and all without the need for their bank details.”

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