Blog - BOPP #Top tipsBlog - BOPP #Top tipshttps://blog.bopp.io/blogs/tag/top-tipsThu, 19 Mar 2026 09:26:01 -0700http://zoho.com/sites/<![CDATA[Accept card payments? Who is taking a cut of your profits?]]>https://blog.bopp.io/blogs/post/accept-card-payments-who-is-taking-a-cut-of-your-profitsDo you know how many other organisations are involved when you accept a card payment from a customer? Or how much each middleman takes from your ]]>

Do you know how many other organisations are involved when you accept a card payment from a customer? Or how much each middleman takes from your profits in the process?

While accepting card payments may seem convenient, there literally is a price to pay. Not just with the fees, but also with the days you have to wait to get paid, as well as the potential risk of card fraud.

With all these steps involved in the process, what are the fees being charged and who is taking them?


Whether it is the bank, the card machine provider, the Visa/Mastercard network or some other regulatory authority, every fee taken is chipping away directly into your profits.


It might start off sounding quite minimal, but 2% here and 20p there, £5 for this and £10 for that, soon those charges start stacking up.

The good news is there is another way that you can accept payment easily and securely, plus you don't need to wait days for the funds to reach your account.

BOPP is a new way to make and receive payments. This new bank-to-bank payment app allows you to request a payment by creating a secure Paylink and sharing over email or messaging app, or creating a QR code.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Because the app is linked to mobile banking apps and accounts are bank-verified it makes it even more secure than processing cards, plus as the payments are made instantly and the funds reach your account straightaway.


The best bit is rather than sharing your hard-earned profits with all the people in the card payment process, you pay just a single flat fee of £10 a month + vat for unlimited transactions.

There are over 30 million people with an online bank account who can use BOPP, so why wouldn't you chose this bank-to-bank payment app as your preferred way to collect payments.


BOPP is free for personal use, and the person paying doesn't need to download the app to pay you.     

Find out more about BOPP
]]>Tue, 09 Mar 2021 14:33:12 +0000<![CDATA[The future of donations - How charities can use new payment methods to reduce costs]]>https://blog.bopp.io/blogs/post/the-future-of-donations-how-charities-can-use-new-payment-methods-to-reduce-costsA healthy stream of donations is the lifeblood of every charity, but paying a fee each time a donation is received means working harder for every penn ]]>

A healthy stream of donations is the lifeblood of every charity, but paying a fee each time a donation is received means working harder for every penny received. However, there is a new, game-changing way to take donations that is transforming how the charity sector receives funds.


The cost of accepting donations

When donations are received by a card payment, card processing fees are charged, usually as a percentage. These transaction costs mean the more donations received, the higher the fee that needs to be paid. In addition, if the charity is using a third party provider such as GoFundMe, there are often platform fees to pay as well.

For example, Just Giving charge a 2.9% fee plus 20p for each transaction when donating to a UK charity, as well as a £39 a month (+VAT) fee to use the platform for those raising £15,000 a year or more.

Cancer Research UK uses Giving Pages to collect donations which also incurs a fee from the card processing companies, for example PayPal UK charges 1.4% + 20p per donation.

Even if special rates are negotiated, many charities still pay what is now considered, way too much to receive donations.

Introducing BOPP

BOPP is a new way to help charities take donations using secure Paylinks and QR codes. To request a donation, you need to download the app - no app is required for your donors to make a payment.

When you sign up to request payments through BOPP, your account details are verified by the bank. This is for enhanced security for payers, so they know that the account and organisation they are paying is genuine as it has been confirmed by the bank themselves.


What are the new ways to donate?
Imagine if a donor could simply scan a QR code and then choose their donation amount, they authorise the payment in their mobile banking app and the money goes securely and directly into your charity account with no transaction fees deducted at any point. You could print and display QR codes at your physical locations and during special events. Take the example below- a school PTA could display a QR code in a waiting room, TV screen or notice board for easy cash free donations.

Consider this...you email all your donors with a secure Paylink. When they click the link it opens their mobile banking app with a suggested donation amount and your bank details already included. They simply authorise the payment using their own banking app security and the payment is sent to your charity bank account instantly. You can even add a reference to the payment to link it back to a specific email campaign or share a Paylink via WhatsApp.
What does it cost?
This really is the best bit. There is just a flat fee of £10 a month (plus VAT) for unlimited transactions (subject to our generous fair use policy). This small charge is payable by organisations accepting payment. There are no fees charged when someone makes a payment. So whether you take one donation a day or hundreds, you only pay £10 a month to receive that money instantly. There is no minimum term, set up fees or cancellation fees.

In the example of a charity scenario, a tea and cake or coffee morning could see registered "members" be authorised to generate payment requests on behalf of the charity.

In this instance, the "host" can enter any amount that a donor wishes to pay and generate a QR code that can easily be scanned to effect payment. They can even send a Paylink via text.

The funds would be transmitted directly from the donors bank account to the verified and nominated bank account used by the charity.
Stop wasting precious donations on paying card processing fees.

No minimum contract term. No cancellation fees 
Sign up for 30-day free trial
]]>Wed, 03 Mar 2021 15:59:00 +0000<![CDATA[What are paylinks and are they safe?]]>https://blog.bopp.io/blogs/post/What-are-paylinksThere were almost 1.4m fraudulent transactions that took place in the first half of 2020 in the UK, with a gross loss value of over £374m 1 .  Whil ]]>

There were almost 1.4m fraudulent transactions that took place in the first half of 2020 in the UK, with a gross loss value of over £374m1.  While the industry is getting better at preventing such activity, it's still a huge issue affecting individuals, businesses and the economy as a whole.

 

While making payments is becoming easier and more convenient with mobile banking and payment apps, the need to remain cautious when transferring money online continues to be important.

 

Paylinks are a newer, more simple and effective way to pay someone. A Paylink is a web link which, when generated from BOPP, can securely open your mobile banking app and hold the bank account and payment details of the person you want to pay. This makes it easier to send money to the right person with the tap of a button, instead of fiddling about with account numbers and sort-codes, increasing the risk of errors.

 

Why would I use a Paylinks for my business?

In the UK, on average SMEs are chasing five invoice payments at any one time, amounting to an average of £8,500 and 1.5 hours per day spent on the admin2. Imagine the time saved in your business if you could simply send your customers a Paylink via email or WhatsApp, and they could simply click to pay you.  

 

Are Paylinks safe?

When a Paylink is generated from BOPP, the bank account details are verified by the account holders bank. Therefore if someone requests money from you via the BOPP app, you will see the account holders name, meaning that it is impossible for someone to mislead you into paying money into someone else's account.

 

How do I know that a Paylink is genuine?

We all know how important it is to be cautious when it comes to clicking on links and Paylinks are no different, however we have created the Link Safe Code to help you determine if links can be trusted.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          


Source - Where has the link come from? Who is the sender? If it uses a third-party finance app, is that app registered with the Financial Conduct Authority?

   

Scrutinise - Are you expecting this Paylink? What is the content and quality of the message that has been sent? Are there any spelling or grammar errors? What does the message actually say?

   

Send - Where does the link take you? You can hover over a link and the destination will appear in the bottom left of your browser.

   

How to choose a trusted payment app that provides Paylinks:

  1. Is the provider registered and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority?

  2. Is the provider connected to all major relevant banks in the UK?

  3. Does the provider offer merchant support?

  4. How much will it cost you to use the app and process payments?

   

BOPP is a bank-to-bank payment app, regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. It is free for personal use and costs just £10 a month + vat for unlimited transactions.

   

To request payments you need to first registers at www.bopp.io and then download the app so you can have your account details verified by your bank. The app isn't required to make payments. With BOPP there are two different ways to send payment requests; showing a QR code or generating a secure Paylink which you can share via any messaging app or email.

   

You can use Paylinks to transfer money between friends and family, or to request payments from your customers. 


 

1https://www.ukfinance.org.uk/system/files/Half-year-fraud-update-2020-FINAL.pdf

2https://www.tide.co/blog/tide-update/new-research-uk-smes-chasing-50bn-in-late-payments

   

Find out more about BOPP
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