Ryft: 10 Key Things You Must Know

Overview

Ryft is a dynamic fintech company specializing in providing advanced payment solutions tailored specifically for online marketplaces and digital platforms. Founded by entrepreneurs with firsthand experience in the challenges of marketplace payments, Ryft emerged to simplify and optimize transaction processing by offering features such as split payments, escrow services, and subscription billing, all while ensuring regulatory compliance and security. Serving clients primarily across the UK and Europe, Ryft has gained recognition for its innovative approach to marketplace finance and its commitment to reducing costs and complexities associated with payment processing. This article explores ten key insights about Ryft, highlighting the company’s origins, features, market impact, and future outlook.

1. Founding Background and Market Need

Ryft was founded by Sadra Hosseini and Alex Mackenzie, who previously created Butlr, a mobile ordering marketplace app that grew to over a million users before acquisition. Through this venture, they experienced the difficulties of managing payments on marketplaces, including high fees and limited flexibility with existing providers like Stripe. Motivated by their own challenges, they launched Ryft in 2019 to serve as a purpose-built payment platform explicitly designed to address marketplace payment complexities, supporting merchants, platforms, and their transactional requirements more effectively.

2. Designed Specifically for Marketplaces and Platforms

Unlike general payment processors, Ryft focuses exclusively on marketplace and platform payments, offering tailored features such as automated split payments, unlimited escrow facilities, and delayed payouts. These capabilities enable marketplaces to hold funds securely, distribute payments to multiple parties according to customized rules, and automate commissions and fees. By addressing marketplace-specific needs, Ryft enables its clients to scale while maintaining operational simplicity and compliance.

3. Robust Compliance and Security

Ryft operates under the regulatory oversight of the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as an authorized payment institution. Its platform is fully compliant with the Revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) and PCI DSS Level 1 security standards, including advanced 3D Secure 2 implementation. These compliance measures not only help marketplaces avoid potential regulatory pitfalls such as account closures but also protect payments and user data with enterprise-grade encryption and robust anti-fraud tools.

4. Comprehensive Payment Features

Ryft supports receiving payments from all major credit and debit cards along with popular digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay. It also facilitates multi-currency transactions, enabling marketplaces to operate across borders with 15 major currencies including USD, EUR, GBP, and JPY. Alongside the essentials, the company provides subscription billing for recurring payments and detailed payment analytics, offering marketplaces transparency and control over their transaction flows.

5. Split Payments and Escrow Services

One of Ryft’s standout features is its ability to split payments instantly between multiple recipients, based on custom-defined commission rates and transaction flows. This replaces manual and error-prone processes, ensuring compliance and efficiency. Moreover, Ryft offers an unlimited escrow system allowing marketplaces to hold payments until specific conditions are met, mitigating fraud and building buyer-seller trust — an essential element for online platforms handling large volumes of transactions.

6. Monetisation Through Embedded Payments

Ryft empowers marketplaces and platforms to generate additional revenue by monetising the payments processed through their own infrastructure. This embedded finance approach allows platforms to capture transaction fees directly rather than relying solely on third-party payment providers. This strategy fosters new revenue streams and improves the financial sustainability of digital marketplaces.

7. Pricing Model and Cost Efficiency

Ryft offers a transparent pricing structure consisting mainly of competitive transaction fees combining a percentage with a small fixed charge. Uniquely, there are no setup fees or hidden charges, but a minimum monthly fee of £1,000 applies, reflecting their focus on businesses with substantial transaction volume. Clients switching to Ryft have reported significant savings, sometimes above 60%, compared to traditional payment providers like Stripe.

8. Geographic Reach and Currency Support

Currently, Ryft serves marketplaces operating predominantly within the UK and Europe, including the ability to onboard sellers and process payments in these regions. It also supports payouts to sellers in the United States. The multi-currency support and payout capabilities ensure marketplaces can smoothly operate across borders, although Ryft’s geographic scope remains focused on Europe, making it ideal for businesses centered there.

9. Integration and Customer Support

Ryft provides modern, RESTful APIs and SDKs for web, iOS, and Android, enabling straightforward integration with marketplaces’ existing technology stacks. Its UK-based development team offers hands-on support during onboarding and integration, ensuring clients receive personalized assistance. This customer-centric approach helps reduce time-to-market and reduces integration complexities often associated with payment platforms.

10. Future Outlook and Industry Impact

As of mid-2025, Ryft is raising funds to advance its technology and expand its reach, reflecting confidence in marketplace payments as a growing fintech sector. The company’s strong focus on compliance, marketplace-specific features, and cost-efficiency positions it as a notable alternative to large incumbents like Stripe and Adyen. Ryft continues to innovate in embedded finance and payment data analytics, with ambitions to reshape how marketplaces handle payments globally.

Conclusion

Ryft is a fintech innovator that addresses the unique challenges of online marketplace payments with a specialized, compliant, and efficient platform. Born from direct marketplace experience, it delivers essential features like split payments, escrow services, subscription management, and embedded finance, all while maintaining strict regulatory standards. With significant cost savings and tailored support, Ryft empowers digital platforms to enhance their payment operations and unlock new revenue streams. As marketplaces continue to evolve and expand globally, Ryft’s focused solutions provide a compelling choice for businesses seeking scalable and secure payment infrastructure. The rise of companies like Ryft prompts reflection on how fintech innovation is transforming the backbone of digital commerce and what future payment ecosystems might look like.