Ryft lays claim to largest UK payments Series B round of 2026 as company eyes European and US expansion
Manchester-based payments company Ryft has secured a £20 million Series B led by Gresham House Ventures. More than 6,500 businesses, including Epos Now, Chaiwalla, the Disasters Emergency Committee, Daytrip and Sprive, are now using its payment system. The investment, which takes the total raised to date to approximately £27 million, will support Ryft’s expansion across Europe and the US, while accelerating its product development and move upmarket.
As part of its European expansion, Ryft has applied for a full EU license from the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA). With this, Ryft will be able to passport its services across the European Economic Area. The round also featured participation from existing investors Pembroke VCT and Ingenii Capital.
Ryft’s CEO and Co-founder, Sadra Hosseini comments: “This round of investment means we can take what we’ve built in the UK into new European markets and compete on the global stage. Payments have been dominated by a small number of incumbents for a long time. We want to provide a powerful and efficient alternative to businesses, not just in Europe, but globally.”
Founded in 2021 by Alex Mackenzie, Richard Kirby and Hosseini, Ryft builds payment solutions for marketplaces, platforms and multi-location businesses, helping them manage seller onboarding and complex transaction flows, including recurring billing, automated split payments and cross-border payouts, through a single integration.
Rohit Mathur, Partner at Gresham House Ventures, comments: “Modern commerce runs on platforms, from marketplaces and franchises, to creators, and, in time, AI agents, but the payments foundation beneath it was built for a two-party world that no longer exists. Ryft is the rare UK built, FCA regulated FinTech designed for multi-party payments from the ground up, and its best customers are compounding volumes over 100% a year on the platform.”
“As commerce shifts to instant, multi-party platforms and increasingly agent initiated payments, ownership of the infrastructure rails becomes a question of national economic sovereignty, not just merchant cost. We're backing Ryft because the UK needs domestic champions with payment architecture for the next era of commerce, and Ryft is one of them. Sadra, Alex, Richard and the wider team are executing at an impressive pace, and we are proud to back this category defining Manchester FinTech.”
Fred Ursell, Head of Investments at Pembroke Investment Managers, says: "Splitting a payment cleanly between multiple parties is slow, technical, heavily regulated work, which is precisely why the incumbents left it half-served for a decade, and precisely why it was worth building properly. We first met Sadra in 2024 and Ryft has since done everything he said it would in that first meeting. Plenty of founders can grow quickly for a year, but not many are deliberately building a team and a culture that will still be compounding in five. This is the third time we have backed Ryft, and our largest investment in the company to date."
2026 RTIH Innovation Awards
Payments will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.
The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.
Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.
Check out our 2025 winners here.
Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.
In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”
“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”
He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”
Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.
