TrueLayer teams up with self-employed-focused pension provider Penfold

Self-employed pension provider Penfold has joined forces with TrueLayer, becoming the financial API provider’s latest partner.

Penfold helps users set up, manage and track their pensions online and has a particular focus on helping the self-employed, freelancers and limited company directors gain access to top-of-the-range pension pots. 

From today, and thanks to its collaboration with TrueLayer, users will now have access to instant and secure payments to fund their pensions. 

“The pension industry is stuck in the dark ages and this has very real consequences for people who want to do the right thing and save for retirement,” said Pete Hykin, co-founder of Penfold, who pitched his startup at the AltFi London Summit in 2019.

“Our partnership with TrueLayer is a fantastic next step, allowing our customers to top up their payments immediately, securely, and for free. In time, this integration will give our customers even more visibility over their finances, helping them budget for their pension and plan for the retirement they deserve.”

By integrating with TrueLayer’s financial API, Penfold’s customers can now top up their pension pots wherever they like through open banking. 

Jamie Morton, UK country manager at TrueLayer, added: “Less than a quarter of the UK’s estimated five million self-employed people currently contribute to a pension, according to government data, with half saying they are not confident about how they will fund their retirement.” 

“Working with a firm like Penfold that is looking to solve such a significant financial and societal issue is incredibly exciting. With open banking payments, it can offer a faster, more secure option for its customers to build their retirement fund.”

TrueLayer has been on a partnership spree as of late, teaming up with micro-investment platform Wombat Invest just last week to enable instant open banking deposits for its customers.

In January, TrueLayer also made moves to take on the payments industry, launching its own open banking-powered payment method, PayDirect, which helps firms to streamline their payments process.