India’s Tata Consultancy Services reportedly in the race to run UK’s Faster Payments service

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is reportedly in contention to take over the administration of the UK’s Faster Payments network from Mastercard-owned Vocalink.
The Faster Payments service, launched in 2008, enables near-instant money transfers between UK-based bank accounts.
Vocalink, which operates Faster Payments, was acquired by Mastercard in 2016 for $920 million.
TCS is said to be the leading candidate in the bid, competing with Vocalink for the opportunity.
The final decision is expected after the UK government’s Vision for Payments strategy is published, and new consumer protections around Faster Payments are established.
Pay.UK, responsible for imposing rules and policies for the service since 2017, is conducting a comprehensive procurement process for the New Payments Architecture (NPA).
The feasibility and potential challenges of transferring the service from one infrastructure provider to another, without downtime, are being discussed.
Faster Payments is a crucial part of the UK’s payment capabilities, handling various transactions from everyday household payments to payroll and state benefits.
The regulatory non-objection and assurance process is ongoing, and neither TCS nor Mastercard has provided comments on the matter.