TrueLayer raises £20.4m led by CDP Venture Capital
This article covers TrueLayer, the London-based fintech startup, which has raised £20.4m in a growth funding round led by Italy's CDP Venture Capital to scale its Pay by Bank payments product. The development aims to expand open-banking account-to-account payments as an alternative to card networks, targeting merchants and consumers across Europe.
TrueLayer, the London-based fintech startup, has raised £20.4m in a growth funding round led by Italy’s CDP Venture Capital to scale its Pay by Bank payments product — a move that matters as European regulators, banks and payments groups push for alternatives to US card networks.
Why it matters
The funding comes as momentum builds across Europe to reduce dependence on Visa and Mastercard. Policymakers and industry groups are exploring native European rails and new settlement models, while the ECB is advancing work on a digital euro. A funded player like TrueLayer could accelerate merchant adoption of direct bank payments, shifting fees and settlement flows away from traditional card rails.
Inside the product
TrueLayer offers Pay by Bank, a payments option that uses open banking to initiate account-to-account transactions as an alternative to card payments. The company says its technology is live in 22 countries, serves roughly 30 million users and is integrated by large merchants such as Ryanair and Just Eat. The product aims to lower payment costs for merchants and reduce friction at checkout by routing payments directly from consumer bank accounts.
Who are the investors?
The round was led by Italy’s CDP Venture Capital and raised £20.4m. TrueLayer did not disclose a wider list of participants in its announcement.
CDP Venture Capital’s involvement is notable because it ties a major Italian investor to a business positioning itself as a European alternative to US card networks, and underlines cross-border interest in payments infrastructure.
If you're researching potential backers in this space:
- Explore our list of fintech venture capital firms in the UK
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Founder perspective
In the announcement, Francesco Simoneschi, CEO, TrueLayer, said:
We started TrueLayer with a simple belief: Europe deserves payment infrastructure built in Europe. Having Italy back that belief means a great deal to us personally, especially to our talented team in Milan, who work hard every day to build the future of European payments.
Simoneschi framed the round as validation of TrueLayer’s strategy to expand Pay by Bank across Europe and support its Milan engineering base.
The bigger picture
The deal sits at the intersection of regulation, industry strategy and merchant economics. European payments groups such as Bancomat, Bizum, Wero, Sibs-MB WAY and Vipps MobilePay are already working on cross-border arrangements, and several national initiatives aim to strengthen local clearing and settlement. If merchants and consumers accept bank‑initiated payments at scale, the payments landscape could shift meaningfully over the next few years.
This raise underscores continued investor interest in fintech infrastructure across the UK and Europe as the region seeks more homegrown payments solutions and options beyond card networks.
They've invested in TrueLayer
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| Investors | Investment Focus | Startup Investments | Round Size | Connect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 CDP Venture Capital( ) Rome, Italy  | ||||
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