News from the Wire

TPA appoints Renuka Rawlins as Director of Policy & Government Affairs

Wednesday, July 01, 2026 — 16:44:26 (UTC)

The Payments Association Appoints Renuka Rawlins as Director of Policy & Government Affairs to continue payments policy momentum

LONDON, UK — Wednesday July 1st, 2026 — The Payments Association, a trade body for the payments sector, has appointed Renuka Rawlins as its new Director of Policy & Government Affairs.

Rawlins steps into the role to lead the association’s strategic engagement with regulators, government bodies and industry stakeholders during a pivotal era of digital transformation and shifting financial regulations.

She brings high-level experience spanning both the public and private sectors, bridging the gap between disruptive fintech innovation, banking and civil service policymaking.

Prior to joining The Payments Association, Rawlins served as Head of Policy & Public Affairs for fintech standout Yaspa, following her tenure as Government Affairs & Policy Manager at Revolut. Her track record in the private sector also includes Assistant Vice-President of Government Relations at Barclays.

This deep commercial experience is complemented by an extensive career within the UK government, including roles such as a Technical Qualifications Assurance and Regulation Policy Lead at the Department for Education, a Senior Policy Advisor at the Ministry of Justice, and an Inquiry Manager for the House of Commons.

Beyond her policy work, Rawlins is deeply committed to social impact, currently serving as an Advisory Board Member and former Mentoring Coordinator for The Catalyst Collective, a community interest company focused on youth empowerment.

Emma Banymandhub, CEO of The Payments Association, said: "Renuka is exactly the person we need to continue the policy drive we have seen from The Payments Association in recently years. Her combination of parliamentary insight, fintech knowledge and banking experience makes her uniquely qualified to advocate for our members. As regulatory frameworks evolve, Renuka’s leadership will be invaluable to ensure our industry’s voice remains central in guiding Europe payments future.

“Having gained policy experience from working directly with many of our member organisations, she possesses first-hand experience and keen insight into how members can extract the most value from policy initiatives.”

Renuka Rawlins, newly appointed Director of Policy & Government Affairs, said: "It’s an exciting time to be joining The Payments Association. Payments innovation is moving fast and our regulatory frameworks need to keep pace without stifling the sector. Having worked across Government, within tier-one banking, and on the frontline of hyper-growth fintech, I look forward to tackling this challenge from the trade body side with a policy lens. The Payments Association has played a major role in defining the future of finance in recent years and I’m delighted to be part of continuing that effort.

“Another reason I was so excited to join The Payments Association is that I was hired while pregnant. In a female-led organisation, my pregnancy was simply seen as a fact of life, not a factor in my appointment. Pregnancy says nothing about a person's ambition, capability or leadership potential. The fact that this still feels noteworthy elsewhere shows how much further we still have to go.”

ENDS

About The Payments Association The Payments Association is a community for all companies in payments, whatever their size, capability, location or regulatory status. Its purpose is to empower the payments sector, so that the connections, collaboration and learning shape an industry that works for all. It works closely with industry stakeholders such as the Bank of England, the FCA, HM Treasury, the PSR, Pay.UK, UK Finance and Innovate Finance. Through its comprehensive programme of activities and with guidance from an independent Advisory Board of leading payments experts, The Payments Association facilitates the connections that join the ecosystem together and make it stronger. These activities include a programme of digital and face-to-face events, including the annual PAY360 and FC360 conferences, The PAY360 Awards dinner, PA@TheCity, CEO roundtables, workshops, webinars, and training activities. The Payments Association also runs eight stakeholder working groups covering Cross-border, Digital Currencies, ESG, Financial Crime, Financial Inclusion, Merchant Payments, Open Banking and Regulatory. The volunteers in these groups represent the industry and collaborate to ensure their driving issues are addressed effectively. TPA also produces a series of thought leadership outputs, including our Payments Intelligence reports, whitepapers, articles, podcasts, and video interviews.

Notice to readers: These are archived articles. Contact information, links and other details may be out of date. We regret any inconvenience.

Source: Company press release.

Categories: Appointment