Ecospend awarded DWP contract for Universal Credit proof of concept

Ecospend has been awarded a contract by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in the UK to supply an Open Banking proof of concept (PoC) for Universal Credit applications.

On the government ‘Contracts Finder’ website, the contract start date is listed as 26 May 2024, with the end date confirmed as 30 November 2024.

The contract is valued at £104,184 and is considered a “single tender action”, which means it is “a direct contract with a single supplier, without competition”.

Ecospend, which is owned by Trustly and already provides Open Banking services to HMRC and NS&I, has been tasked with delivering a PoC in line with DWP’s Universal Credit Project requirements.

Universal Credit is a single monthly payment to individuals on low incomes, or who are out of work or are unable to work, and replaces benefits and tax credits including Child Tax Credit, Housing Benefit and Income Support.

Official documentation reveals that the PoC will be “underpinned” by Ecospend’s ‘Datalink’ solution, which is “a configurable white label AIS product designed to facilitate the secure sharing of financial data”.

Through the solution, DWP’s customers will be able to consent to Ecospend accessing and sharing their bank account information and financial transaction data with DWP “for the purpose of supporting their applications for Universal Credit”.

The PoC will be limited to a population of UC claimants aligned to three job centres, which are to be determined by DWP.

The document stated: “Considering the demographics of UC claimants, it is expected that consent rates will be substantial. To this effect, DWP will benefit from a robust dataset, offering valuable insights and lessons learned.

“This comprehensive information is expected to directly contribute to the formulation and implementation of a highly effective long-term operation, transforming the future UC application process in line with ever increasing customer expectations whilst reducing DWP’s operational costs.”

Ecospend will deliver the AIS technology infrastructure and provide ongoing technical support, as part of its partnership with the DWP.

At the start of the year, Ecospend became the first Open Banking provider to be accepted onto the Crown Commercial Services’ new Open Banking Dynamic Purchasing System.

In 2021, Ecospend was awarded a contract with HM Revenue & Customs, making it the first provider globally to support with the implementation of Open Banking payments in a government department.

NS&I, one of the UK’s largest savings organisations, began offering customers an Open Banking-powered payment option via Ecospend in June 2023.