Shared research study link
Modulr Embedded Payments Perception Study
Understanding how UK business decision makers perceive embedded payments platforms, what builds trust in B2B fintech vendors, and how Modulr compares to alternatives
Study Overview
Updated Jan 15, 2026
Research question: how UK business decision-makers perceive embedded payments platforms, what builds trust in B2B fintech vendors, and how Modulr compares to Stripe, Adyen, and traditional banks.
Research group: 18 UK decision-makers (mix of SME operators and technical/procurement leads) reviewed Modulr’s site and proposition.
What they said: Modulr is “embedded payments plumbing” (APIs, virtual accounts, Faster Payments payouts), but the website leans on buzzwords and withholds buyer-critical details.
Trust drivers vs. red flags: trust comes from verifiable facts-regulation/safeguarding clarity, published pricing with worked examples, explicit funds-flow/settlement timings, open API docs and sandbox, public status/incident history, and reachable named support; walk-aways include gated basics, vague claims, hidden fees/lock-ins, and pushy or evasive sales.
Main insights: buyers choose by job-to-be-done; Modulr can win UK transfer/payout-heavy flows if it proves resilience and accountability, while Stripe/Adyen or banks are default picks for cards, global reach, or perceived safety.
Two clear personas: non-technical/SMB need plain language, visible pricing, and safety cues; technical/procurement need SLAs, reconciliation/rails detail, risk/freeze policies, and contract/exit terms.
Takeaways (ship now): add a one-line value proposition and simple funds-flow diagram; publish regulation and safeguarding (licence numbers, sponsor banks, FSCS yes/no), pricing with worked UK examples, SLAs and a status page with incident history, and open docs plus a self-serve sandbox.
Deal-closing commitments: named UK support with hours/targets, explicit settlement/limits including weekends, and a one-page migration/exit plan covering data export and account-forwarding mechanics.
Research group: 18 UK decision-makers (mix of SME operators and technical/procurement leads) reviewed Modulr’s site and proposition.
What they said: Modulr is “embedded payments plumbing” (APIs, virtual accounts, Faster Payments payouts), but the website leans on buzzwords and withholds buyer-critical details.
Trust drivers vs. red flags: trust comes from verifiable facts-regulation/safeguarding clarity, published pricing with worked examples, explicit funds-flow/settlement timings, open API docs and sandbox, public status/incident history, and reachable named support; walk-aways include gated basics, vague claims, hidden fees/lock-ins, and pushy or evasive sales.
Main insights: buyers choose by job-to-be-done; Modulr can win UK transfer/payout-heavy flows if it proves resilience and accountability, while Stripe/Adyen or banks are default picks for cards, global reach, or perceived safety.
Two clear personas: non-technical/SMB need plain language, visible pricing, and safety cues; technical/procurement need SLAs, reconciliation/rails detail, risk/freeze policies, and contract/exit terms.
Takeaways (ship now): add a one-line value proposition and simple funds-flow diagram; publish regulation and safeguarding (licence numbers, sponsor banks, FSCS yes/no), pricing with worked UK examples, SLAs and a status page with incident history, and open docs plus a self-serve sandbox.
Deal-closing commitments: named UK support with hours/targets, explicit settlement/limits including weekends, and a one-page migration/exit plan covering data export and account-forwarding mechanics.
Participant Snapshots
6 profiles
Oscar Hughes
Four-year-old Oscar in Liverpool is curious, routine-loving, and dinosaur obsessed. Only child of working parents, he enjoys outdoor play, Bluey, and museums. Family prioritises safety, durability, value, and simple, local experiences.
Kacper Nowak
Kacper is a bilingual 6-year-old in Bradford: gentle, curious, and routine-loving. Lives in a budget-conscious, home-owning household. Loves trains, dinosaurs, LEGO, and park days; parents prioritise safety, durability, learning, and simple, joyful experien…
James Cartwright
Birmingham-based 36-year-old NHS admin, married with one child. Budget-conscious, practical, and family-first. Loves Aston Villa, simple home cooking, and UK breaks. Chooses clear, reliable, time-saving products with fair pricing and strong reviews.
Darren Stone
41-year-old Bristol-based NHS facilities operative and part-time carer of his nine-year-old daughter. Budget-conscious homeowner, bus commuter, football fan. Practical, fair-minded, tech-capable, values reliability, clear pricing, and low-fuss solutions tha…
Natalie Harper
Natalie, 45, a practical Brummie and former customer service advisor, is currently inactive, frugal, and community-minded. She prioritises value, clarity, and durability, supports family, enjoys simple pleasures, and leans Reform UK on policy scepticism and…
Declan Keane
Irish-born 66-year-old retiree in Croydon, married without children. Frugal, community-minded homeowner who values simplicity, reliability, and clear communication. Walks daily, cooks hearty meals, follows Crystal Palace, volunteers, and prefers sustainable…
Oscar Hughes
Four-year-old Oscar in Liverpool is curious, routine-loving, and dinosaur obsessed. Only child of working parents, he enjoys outdoor play, Bluey, and museums. Family prioritises safety, durability, value, and simple, local experiences.
Kacper Nowak
Kacper is a bilingual 6-year-old in Bradford: gentle, curious, and routine-loving. Lives in a budget-conscious, home-owning household. Loves trains, dinosaurs, LEGO, and park days; parents prioritise safety, durability, learning, and simple, joyful experien…
James Cartwright
Birmingham-based 36-year-old NHS admin, married with one child. Budget-conscious, practical, and family-first. Loves Aston Villa, simple home cooking, and UK breaks. Chooses clear, reliable, time-saving products with fair pricing and strong reviews.
Darren Stone
41-year-old Bristol-based NHS facilities operative and part-time carer of his nine-year-old daughter. Budget-conscious homeowner, bus commuter, football fan. Practical, fair-minded, tech-capable, values reliability, clear pricing, and low-fuss solutions tha…
Natalie Harper
Natalie, 45, a practical Brummie and former customer service advisor, is currently inactive, frugal, and community-minded. She prioritises value, clarity, and durability, supports family, enjoys simple pleasures, and leans Reform UK on policy scepticism and…
Declan Keane
Irish-born 66-year-old retiree in Croydon, married without children. Frugal, community-minded homeowner who values simplicity, reliability, and clear communication. Walks daily, cooks hearty meals, follows Crystal Palace, volunteers, and prefers sustainable…
Overview
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Demographic Overview
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Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 ACS 1-year (Table B19001; >$200k evenly distributed for comparison)
Media Ingestion
Connections appear when personas follow many of the same sources, highlighting overlapping media diets.
Questions and Responses
3 questions
Response Summaries
3 questions
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Persona Correlations
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Overview
Across 18 UK business decision-makers, trust in embedded payments vendors is built from concrete, verifiable signals rather than branding: clear one-line value, published pricing with worked examples, explicit regulatory/funds-safeguarding statements, operational transparency (money-flow diagrams, settlement timings, status/incident history), public technical artefacts (API docs, sandbox) and reachable named support with SLAs. Demographics shape which signals matter most: non-technical and older pragmatic operators favour plain language, visuals and phone support; technical/procurement-minded buyers prioritise deep operational, contractual and security evidence. UK-local expectations (Faster Payments, named safeguarding banks, FSCS/insurance language, UK support hours) cut across segments and act as a consistent trust baseline. Gatekeeping (hidden basics behind “book a demo”) and buzzword-heavy copy are reliable conversion killers for almost all groups.
Total responses: 18
Key Segments
| Segment | Attributes | Insight | Supporting Agents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Very young / non-technical (visual-first) |
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These respondents equate trust with obvious, tangible UI signals (big locks, ticks, faces, visible phone number, large CTAs) and extremely simple language. They will convert quickly if the homepage immediately communicates one-line value, an obvious phone contact and simple visuals demonstrating 'how money moves'. | Oscar Hughes, Kacper Nowak |
| Pragmatic SME / non-technical operators |
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Prioritise price transparency, straightforward onboarding checklists (KYB, set-up times), reconciliation/export features and UK phone support. For this group, worked TCO examples and clear timelines reduce perceived integration risk and accelerate purchase decisions. | Natalie Harper, Darren Stone |
| Technical / procurement / enterprise-minded |
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Require deep, verifiable operational and contractual detail upfront: SLA/uptime history, API docs (idempotency, retries, webhook semantics), sandbox access without gating, explicit licence/regulator numbers, safeguarding structure, liability split and exit/data-export terms. Vague marketing or gated documentation is an immediate disqualifier. | James Cartwright, Declan Keane |
| UK-local expectations cluster |
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Regardless of technical skill or size, UK-based decision-makers consistently expect explicit statements about rails, named safeguarding banks, how funds are protected, and UK support availability - treating these as minimum trust prerequisites for a UK-facing embedded payments vendor. | Declan Keane, Natalie Harper, Darren Stone, James Cartwright |
Shared Mindsets
| Trait | Signal | Agents |
|---|---|---|
| Plain-English one-line value & simple visuals | A single-sentence product purpose plus a small funds-flow diagram or screenshot is universally calming and increases willingness to engage across technical and non-technical audiences. | Oscar Hughes, Kacper Nowak, Natalie Harper, Darren Stone, James Cartwright, Declan Keane |
| Pricing transparency is essential | Published fees (setup, monthly, per-transaction, chargebacks, FX) with worked examples and TCO calculations are expected; gating pricing is a major conversion killer for SMBs and technical buyers alike. | Natalie Harper, James Cartwright, Darren Stone, Declan Keane, Kacper Nowak, Oscar Hughes |
| Regulatory & funds-safety proof required | Explicit licence/regulator references, safeguarding mechanics (who holds funds), and FSCS/insurance language are core trust signals that reduce perceived custodial and operational risk. | Declan Keane, James Cartwright, Darren Stone, Natalie Harper, Oscar Hughes, Kacper Nowak |
| Operational and technical transparency matters | Public API docs, sandbox access (ideally ungated), cut-off/settlement timings, webhook semantics, and a visible status page with incident history materially increase confidence among integration and procurement teams. | James Cartwright, Declan Keane, Darren Stone, Natalie Harper, Kacper Nowak |
| Reachable, named support and clear contractual terms | Named contacts, UK support hours, onboarding/KYB timelines, SLAs and explicit exit/export terms reduce vendor risk and friction during procurement and onboarding. | Darren Stone, Natalie Harper, James Cartwright, Declan Keane |
| Gatekeeping and buzzword-heavy copy are red flags | Hiding basics behind 'book a demo' or relying on vague marketing language leads to suspicion of hidden fees or lock-in and often causes potential buyers to walk away. | Darren Stone, James Cartwright, Declan Keane, Natalie Harper, Oscar Hughes, Kacper Nowak |
Divergences
| Segment | Contrast | Agents |
|---|---|---|
| Visual-first (Very young / non-technical) | Prioritises large, obvious UI trust cues and phone contact over regulatory documentation or API details - satisficed by clarity and friendliness rather than technical proof. | Oscar Hughes, Kacper Nowak |
| Pragmatic SME / non-technical operators | Focus on pricing clarity, reconciliation and human support means they will accept less deep technical detail if onboarding and cost are clear - opposite to enterprise buyers who demand exhaustive technical/contractual evidence. | Natalie Harper, Darren Stone |
| Technical / procurement / enterprise-minded | Rejects surface-level marketing and requires gated-free technical artefacts, legal terms and operational history. This level of scrutiny can be overkill for smaller operators but is non-negotiable for enterprise procurement. | James Cartwright, Declan Keane |
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Recommendations & Next Steps
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Overview
Buyers understand the product as embedded payments plumbing (APIs, virtual accounts, UK payouts) but don’t see enough operational proof to buy. The website leans on buzzwords and gates the very signals UK decision-makers require: pricing with worked examples, regulation & safeguarding clarity, SLAs/uptime with incident history, public docs & sandbox, money-flow diagrams, and reachable UK support. Two buyer modes: Non-technical want plain language, prices, safety and a phone number; Technical/procurement want deep detail (rails, reconciliation, KYB/KYC, limits, freeze policy, exit). Modulr can win UK payout/transfer-heavy use cases versus Stripe/Adyen/banks if trust is converted into auditable facts.
Quick Wins (next 2–4 weeks)
| # | Action | Why | Owner | Effort | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ship a one-line value prop + funds-flow visual on homepage | Reduces cognitive load; aligns with both personas’ request for plain-English and a simple diagram of where money goes. | Product Marketing + Design | Low | High |
| 2 | Publish Regulation & Safeguarding page | Trust hinge: exact licence, named safeguarding banks, and FSCS yes/no stated clearly. | Compliance + Legal | Low | High |
| 3 | Un-gate API docs and add self-serve sandbox CTA | Technical buyers reject gating. A fast path to trial lifts conversion and shortens sales cycles. | Developer Relations + Engineering | Med | High |
| 4 | Add Pricing preview with worked UK examples | SMEs and procurement need modelable costs upfront to avoid drop-off. | Product Marketing + Finance | Med | High |
| 5 | Show UK support channels, hours and response targets | Buyers expect a phone/chat route and SLAs; visible accountability calms risk concerns. | Support/CS + Sales Ops | Low | Med |
| 6 | Add Status link with basic history (even if interim) | A visible status page (with incidents) is a core credibility signal. | SRE/Platform | Low | Med |
Initiatives (30–90 days)
| # | Initiative | Description | Owner | Timeline | Dependencies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Transparent Pricing & TCO Calculator | Launch a pricing page with line items (setup, monthly, per-transaction, disputes, FX) and worked example bills by common UK use cases; include a simple TCO calculator and a pricing change policy. | Product Marketing + Finance + RevOps | 4–6 weeks | Finance sign-off on unit economics, Legal review of pricing change policy, Web engineering for calculator |
| 2 | Operational Trust Pack: SLA + Status + Post-mortems | Publish uptime SLA with service credits, weekend/holiday settlement behaviour, a public status page with incident history/post-mortems, and webhook delivery guarantees. | SRE/Platform + Legal | 6–8 weeks | Historical incident data collation, Legal approval for SLA language, Status page tooling (e.g., Statuspage) integration |
| 3 | Regulation, Safeguarding & Responsibilities Map | Create a one-page Regulation & Safeguarding explainer (licence numbers, named safeguarding banks, FSCS no/yes), plus a Responsibilities matrix (KYC/KYB, AML, disputes, fraud liability) and a freeze/funds review policy with timelines and escalation. | Compliance + Legal | 3–5 weeks | Sponsor-bank disclosure permissions, Policy documentation updates, Design for matrices and diagrams |
| 4 | Developer Experience Upgrade: Quick-start to First Payout | Deliver a 10-minute quick-start, SDKs, sample app, and time-to-first-payout < 1 day path. Add limits, cut-offs, settlement timings and idempotency/retry semantics to docs. Self-serve sandbox sign-up. | Engineering + DevRel + Design | 8–10 weeks | API doc revamp, Sandbox provisioning flows, SDK coverage and sample data |
| 5 | Exit & Migration Playbook + Contract Cliff Notes | Publish a one-page exit plan (data export formats, virtual account migration, forwarding windows, timelines, fees) and downloadable contract summary (tie-in, notice, SLAs, support hours). | Legal + Product Ops | 4–6 weeks | Legal alignment on exit terms, Engineering input on migration mechanics, Design and web integration |
| 6 | UK Rails Advantage Campaign | Job-to-be-done comparison pages vs Stripe/Adyen/Banks focused on UK virtual accounts, reconciliation and Faster Payments payouts; bundle case studies with numbers, weekend SLA, and a pilot offer. | Product Marketing + Sales Enablement | 6–8 weeks | Case study approvals, SLA artifacts live, Pricing/TCO calculator live |
KPIs to Track
| # | KPI | Definition | Target | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Homepage → Docs/Sandbox CTR | Percent of homepage sessions clicking through to API docs or sandbox sign-up. | ≥ 18% within 60 days | Weekly |
| 2 | Self-serve Sandbox Sign-ups | Count of verified UK business sandbox accounts created without sales intervention. | ≥ 120/month after launch | Weekly |
| 3 | Time-to-First-Payout | Median elapsed time from sandbox sign-up to first successful test payout. | < 24 hours | Weekly |
| 4 | Pricing Page Engagement | Combined metric: calculator completions + worked-example scroll depth (>75%). | ≥ 35% of unique visitors with high-engagement | Weekly |
| 5 | Trial-to-Qualified Opportunity Conversion | Percent of sandbox accounts that create a qualified opportunity (BANT or equivalent). | ≥ 20% | Monthly |
| 6 | SLA Uptime & Incident MTTR | Measured uptime vs SLA and mean time to resolve across incidents posted to status page. | ≥ 99.9% uptime; MTTR < 60 minutes | Monthly |
Risks & Mitigations
| # | Risk | Mitigation | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Legal/regulatory limits on publishing safeguarding partners and policy specifics. | Secure written permissions; publish at least structure and processes even if names are anonymised; link to regulator registers. | Compliance + Legal |
| 2 | Pricing complexity confuses buyers or leaks margin. | Start with tiered examples and ranges; add a TCO calculator; pair with sales for bespoke quotes; version and date pricing. | Finance + Product Marketing |
| 3 | Transparency (status/incidents) may highlight past outages. | Accompany incidents with clear post-mortems and remediation; implement SLAs with credits to signal accountability. | SRE/Platform |
| 4 | Support volume spikes after adding phone/chat and SLAs. | Stagger rollout, add tiered routing, invest in runbooks and self-serve docs; staff up weekend coverage. | Support/CS |
| 5 | Engineering bandwidth limits doc/sandbox and SDK delivery. | Timebox scope to quick-start path, leverage contractor writers/DevRel, and ship iteratively. | Engineering + DevRel |
| 6 | Sponsor-bank dependency creates perceived concentration risk. | Disclose architecture and failover posture; explore secondary partners; document contingency and exit plans. | Compliance + Product Ops |
Timeline
Weeks 0–2: Quick wins live (one-line value, funds-flow, support channels, interim status link).
Weeks 3–6: Launch Regulation & Safeguarding page, Pricing preview, Exit/Contract cliff notes.
Weeks 6–10: Roll out SLA + full status history, TCO calculator, Dev quick-start + sandbox upgrades.
Weeks 10–12: Case studies and UK Rails comparison pages; pilot offer; iterate based on KPI deltas.
Weeks 3–6: Launch Regulation & Safeguarding page, Pricing preview, Exit/Contract cliff notes.
Weeks 6–10: Roll out SLA + full status history, TCO calculator, Dev quick-start + sandbox upgrades.
Weeks 10–12: Case studies and UK Rails comparison pages; pilot offer; iterate based on KPI deltas.
Research Study Narrative
Objective and context
This study examined how UK business decision-makers perceive embedded payments platforms, what builds trust in B2B fintech vendors, and how Modulr compares to alternatives. Across three lines of inquiry, respondents consistently understood Modulr’s core offer as “embedded payments plumbing” (APIs, virtual accounts, UK payout rails), yet flagged gaps in the operational proof needed to buy with confidence.
What buyers think Modulr does-and what’s missing
Respondents read the proposition clearly: “they sell APIs and accounts so you can collect, hold, and send money inside your own product without building banking plumbing yourself.” However, the website’s buzzword-heavy copy doesn’t translate understanding into readiness to engage. Buyers expect, but do not find, a plain-English one-line value, worked pricing examples, explicit regulatory/safeguarding statements (who holds funds, FSCS yes/no), uptime/SLA and outage history, visible support channels, and public developer artefacts (API docs, sandbox). Without these, many either drop out or only proceed after lengthy, high-friction sales conversations.
Trust signals and dealbreakers
- Trust builders: clear regulation & safeguarding (exact authorisation; named safeguarding arrangements; FSCS yes/no), transparent pricing with worked examples, explicit money-flow and settlement timings (incl. weekends), public API docs + self-serve sandbox, a real status page with incident history/post-mortems, and reachable named support/compliance contacts with SLAs. A calm, plain-English tone accelerates trust.
- Walkaways: gating basics behind “book a demo” or NDAs, vague regulatory-sounding claims, hidden fees or lock-in, greenwashed always-green status pages, and pushy/evasive sales conduct.
Personas and UK nuances
- Visual-first non-technical: convert when the homepage shows a one-line value, simple funds-flow visual, obvious phone number, and “safe money” cues (locks/ticks, faces).
- Pragmatic SME operators: need pricing clarity (setup, monthly, per-transaction, disputes, FX) with examples, onboarding/KYB timelines, reconciliation/export features, and UK phone/chat support with targets.
- Technical/procurement buyers: require ungated docs and sandbox, SLA/uptime history, webhook/idempotency semantics, cut-offs/settlement timings, licence numbers, safeguarding structure, liability split, freeze/risk policy, and exit/export terms.
- UK-local baseline (all segments): Faster Payments/Bacs behaviour (incl. weekends), named safeguarding arrangements, FSCS clarity, UK support hours.
Competitive frame
Buyers choose by the job-to-be-done, not brand halo. Modulr is credited with a pragmatic UK advantage-virtual accounts, sort-codes/account numbers, Faster Payments, native payouts that simplify reconciliation and in-product disbursements. For cards, global reach and mature risk tooling, most default to Stripe/Adyen or a bank unless Modulr turns promises into auditable facts. Concerns with a smaller fintech centre on resilience (outages, sponsor-bank dependency), funds protection, freeze/risk policies, pricing clarity and exit/migration pain. Proofs that move the needle: modelable pricing and sample bills; published SLAs and weekend settlement guarantees; named safeguarding and flow-of-funds diagrams; status history with post-mortems; a working sandbox with quick time-to-first-payout; and a one-page exit/migration plan.
Recommendations
- Place a one-line value prop and a simple funds-flow diagram on the homepage.
- Publish a Regulation & Safeguarding page (licence, named safeguarding arrangements, FSCS yes/no).
- Ungate API docs and add self-serve sandbox; document retries, idempotency, cut-offs and settlement timings.
- Add a pricing preview with worked UK examples and a simple TCO calculator.
- Show UK support channels, hours, response targets and named escalation contacts.
- Launch an Operational Trust Pack: SLA with service credits, weekend behaviour, public status with incident history/post-mortems.
- Publish an Exit & Migration playbook (data exports, virtual account migration, timelines, fees).
Risks and mitigations
- Disclosure limits on safeguarding partners: secure permissions; publish structure and link to regulator registers if names cannot be shown.
- Pricing complexity: start with tiered examples and ranges; version/date changes; pair calculator with sales for bespoke quotes.
- Transparency highlights past incidents: pair status history with clear post-mortems and remediation; offer SLA credits.
- Support volume spikes: stagger rollout, tier routing, invest in runbooks/self-serve; staff UK/weekend coverage.
Next steps and measurement
- Weeks 0–2: Ship one-line value + flow visual; surface support channels; interim public status link.
- Weeks 3–6: Go live with Regulation & Safeguarding, pricing preview + examples, exit/contract cliff notes.
- Weeks 6–10: Launch SLA and full status history; TCO calculator; dev quick-start and sandbox upgrades.
- KPIs: Homepage→Docs/Sandbox CTR ≥18%; self-serve sandbox sign-ups ≥120/month; median time-to-first-payout <24 hours; pricing page high-engagement ≥35%; trial→qualified opportunity ≥20%.
Recommended Follow-up Questions
Updated Jan 15, 2026
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When selecting a payments infrastructure provider, which factors are most and least important? For each list item, choose the most important and least important. List: clear regulatory authorisation and safeguarding explanation; published, predictable pricing with worked examples; transparent funds flow and settlement timings; public API docs and self-serve sandbox; published uptime SLA and status/incident history; dedicated named support contacts; industry case studies and references; sponsor/s...maxdiff Quantifies trade-offs driving choice to prioritize messaging, website content, and commercial commitments.
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Please rate each provider on the following attributes using a 7-point semantic scale (left to right). Providers: Modulr, Stripe, Adyen, Your primary bank. Attributes: Transparent ⟷ Opaque; Reliable ⟷ Unreliable; Safe with client funds ⟷ Risky with client funds; Innovative ⟷ Conservative; Developer‑centric ⟷ Business‑user‑centric; UK‑rail specialist ⟷ Global‑reach specialist; Value for money ⟷ Expensive.matrix Maps perception gaps versus competitors to guide positioning and proof points.
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What target thresholds would you require from a new vendor? Please enter numbers for each: first use‑case integration time (weeks); internal engineering effort (FTE‑weeks); minimum acceptable monthly uptime SLA (%); maximum acceptable unplanned downtime per month (minutes); maximum acceptable UK payout settlement delay (hours); maximum acceptable funds‑hold period during risk reviews (days).matrix Defines minimum viable SLAs and integration benchmarks to shape product and contracts.
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Which capabilities do you expect to need in the next 12 months? Select all that apply: virtual accounts with GB sort code/account numbers; Faster Payments outbound; Faster Payments inbound; Direct Debit collection; SEPA credit transfers (in/out); FX and cross‑border payouts; real‑time webhooks for transactions/reconciliation; card issuing; card acquiring (online); Confirmation of Payee; Request to Pay; payment links/checkout; ledgering/balance tracking; granular user/role permissions.multi select Focuses roadmap on high-demand features for UK and near-term expansion needs.
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Which pricing model do you prefer for a payments platform? Rank your top three: pay‑as‑you‑go per transaction (no minimums); tiered volume‑based pricing; monthly platform fee plus lower usage fees; contracted committed volume with discounts; flat fee per active/virtual account; blended rate including FX/interchange share.rank Guides pricing strategy and packaging to align with buyer preference.
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Who plays what role in selecting a payments infrastructure vendor at your company? For each function, choose one: decision‑maker, approver, influencer, no role. Functions: CEO/Founder; CFO/Finance lead; CTO/Engineering; Product; Compliance/MLRO; Risk/Fraud; Operations; Procurement; Legal; Customer Support.matrix Enables targeted sales motions and content for the real buying committee.
Randomize item order within lists. For the matrix brand ratings, rotate provider order across respondents.
Study Overview
Updated Jan 15, 2026
Research question: how UK business decision-makers perceive embedded payments platforms, what builds trust in B2B fintech vendors, and how Modulr compares to Stripe, Adyen, and traditional banks.
Research group: 18 UK decision-makers (mix of SME operators and technical/procurement leads) reviewed Modulr’s site and proposition.
What they said: Modulr is “embedded payments plumbing” (APIs, virtual accounts, Faster Payments payouts), but the website leans on buzzwords and withholds buyer-critical details.
Trust drivers vs. red flags: trust comes from verifiable facts-regulation/safeguarding clarity, published pricing with worked examples, explicit funds-flow/settlement timings, open API docs and sandbox, public status/incident history, and reachable named support; walk-aways include gated basics, vague claims, hidden fees/lock-ins, and pushy or evasive sales.
Main insights: buyers choose by job-to-be-done; Modulr can win UK transfer/payout-heavy flows if it proves resilience and accountability, while Stripe/Adyen or banks are default picks for cards, global reach, or perceived safety.
Two clear personas: non-technical/SMB need plain language, visible pricing, and safety cues; technical/procurement need SLAs, reconciliation/rails detail, risk/freeze policies, and contract/exit terms.
Takeaways (ship now): add a one-line value proposition and simple funds-flow diagram; publish regulation and safeguarding (licence numbers, sponsor banks, FSCS yes/no), pricing with worked UK examples, SLAs and a status page with incident history, and open docs plus a self-serve sandbox.
Deal-closing commitments: named UK support with hours/targets, explicit settlement/limits including weekends, and a one-page migration/exit plan covering data export and account-forwarding mechanics.
Research group: 18 UK decision-makers (mix of SME operators and technical/procurement leads) reviewed Modulr’s site and proposition.
What they said: Modulr is “embedded payments plumbing” (APIs, virtual accounts, Faster Payments payouts), but the website leans on buzzwords and withholds buyer-critical details.
Trust drivers vs. red flags: trust comes from verifiable facts-regulation/safeguarding clarity, published pricing with worked examples, explicit funds-flow/settlement timings, open API docs and sandbox, public status/incident history, and reachable named support; walk-aways include gated basics, vague claims, hidden fees/lock-ins, and pushy or evasive sales.
Main insights: buyers choose by job-to-be-done; Modulr can win UK transfer/payout-heavy flows if it proves resilience and accountability, while Stripe/Adyen or banks are default picks for cards, global reach, or perceived safety.
Two clear personas: non-technical/SMB need plain language, visible pricing, and safety cues; technical/procurement need SLAs, reconciliation/rails detail, risk/freeze policies, and contract/exit terms.
Takeaways (ship now): add a one-line value proposition and simple funds-flow diagram; publish regulation and safeguarding (licence numbers, sponsor banks, FSCS yes/no), pricing with worked UK examples, SLAs and a status page with incident history, and open docs plus a self-serve sandbox.
Deal-closing commitments: named UK support with hours/targets, explicit settlement/limits including weekends, and a one-page migration/exit plan covering data export and account-forwarding mechanics.
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