The Access Group acquires payment platform provider Rapidata Services

Howard Lake | 23 November 2018 | News

• Tagged with:
• Access Group
• Consulting & Agencies
• direct debit
• Rapidata Services plc

Software provider The Access Group will now be offering payment processing capabilities having acquired Rapidata Services Ltd.
Payment platform provider Rapidata processes over 13 million direct debits worth over £180 million each year. It has 600 customers, many of them charities who use it to help them reduce the time, administration and cost of processing payments. 
Indeed, over 10% of the top 500 UK charities by income use Rapidata.

SEE ALSO: Valldata and Rapidata in partnership (9 June 2016)

The announcement was made yesterday at Access World 2018 in Westminster, London.
Chris Bayne, CEO Access Group, commented: “With the UK direct debit payments market alone exceeding 4 billion transactions last year and with nine in every ten UK adults having at least one direct debit, we expect significant uptake of the Rapidata solution.”
 

Benefits first to Access not-for-profit customers

He added that the company will focus on integrating payments processing capabilities for its existing not-for-profit customers, building on Rapidata’s 20 years of experience. It will then extend this to other sectors it serves such as education and health and social care.
Scott Gray, CEO Rapidata, will continue with the business as Access Head of Payments. He said: “As part of Access we will be able to consolidate our position as a market leader in the not-for-profit sector and support our growth ambitions into other markets more rapidly.”

Latest news from Rapidata – we have been acquired by the Access Group! Exciting times ahead! @TheAccessGroup @AccessNFP https://t.co/3oTL4rresY

— Rapidata (@Rapidata_UK) November 23, 2018

• Rapidata launch gives charity supporters more control over their regular giving (2 July 2018)
• 2016 annual direct debit cancellation rate lowest ever, reveals Rapidata report (3 July 2017)
• Wildlife Trusts choose Access thankQ CRM (6 September 2016)

About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale. He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.