Yonder, the modern rewards credit card, has extended its relationship with GoCardless, the bank payment company, by adding Variable Recurring Payments (VRPs) alongside the Direct Debit functionality it uses already.

Thanks to GoCardless’ Instant Bank Pay, Yonder cardholders, or ‘members’, can now use VRPs to instantly pay off their credit card balance.

The arrangement means that Yonder can access both Direct Debit and instant, recurring open banking payments through a single provider. Not only does this make it easy to offer members more payment choice and greater control -- it also provides Yonder two options for collecting repayments, pairing a ubiquitous, tried-and-true payment method with cutting-edge technology.  

Tim Chong, co-founder and CEO at Yonder, said: “In these economic conditions, consumers want more control over their finances. VRPs are the perfect solution. Since we’ve introduced them, we’ve seen many members move from monthly to weekly or even daily repayments. The instant nature of VRPs means they can immediately free up their credit line and take full advantage of our rewards, or gain peace of mind that their balance is cleared. Simply put, VRPs allow our members to manage their repayments in the way that works for them.

“We’ve used GoCardless for Direct Debit for over a year and given their expertise in bank payments, it made sense to add VRPs and offer the two together. Because it’s still early days for open banking, we wanted to have a fallback payment option for our members in case their banks don’t currently offer VRPs or they encounter the odd hiccough as the tech continues to develop. Direct Debit, which has been around for decades, is a great complement.”

Pat Phelan, MD of UK&I and Chief Customer Officer at GoCardless, said: “We’re proud to expand our relationship with Yonder, providing VRPs so they can continue to create an excellent member experience. By combining Direct Debits and VRPs, Yonder can benefit from the best of bank payments, tapping into two payment methods that are fast, secure and cost-effective.”

GoCardless has been active in the VRP space since 2019, when it took the first live transaction through a sandbox developed by the OBIE. Last year it launched a ‘commercial VRP’ pilot with NatWest Group and Charity Right, and introduced its official VRP offering through its Instant Bank Pay feature. Current VRP customers include Nude, the savings app for first time buyers; Pillar, the new fintech platform breaking down credit borders; and ethical lender Plend.

Yonder is a London-based company that provides their members a modern credit experience and benefits such as paying without foreign exchange fees, and worldwide travel insurance. Earlier this year, Yonder secured £62.5m in Series A funding, boosting its market valuation nearly three times to £70m.