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APIs · head to head

Trustly vs Vodeno

Trustly logo

Trustly

APIs

Pay-by-bank payments network, majority-owned by private equity firm Nordic Capital

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Vodeno logo

Vodeno

APIs

Banking-as-a-service platform running on a partner bank licence, backing NatWest's UK BaaS venture

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Trustly it is majority-owned by Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, so its long-term roadmap is ultimately oriented toward an eventual sale or IPO rather than indefinite independent operation.; Vodeno its actual regulatory backing differs by geography, Aion Bank in continental Europe versus NatWest in the UK, so a customer must understand which entity and licence they are actually contracting under rather than assuming one uniform Vodeno product.
  • They diverge on capability: Trustly covers Pay by bank checkout, Vodeno covers Core banking infrastructure.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Trustly and Vodeno actually diverge.

Attributes where Trustly and Vodeno differ
AttributeTrustlyVodeno

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), platforms (Web, API), user rating (Not yet rated), category (APIs).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Trustly

  • Pay by bank checkout
  • Instant refunds
  • Verified payouts
  • Multi-market bank connectivity
  • Merchant dashboard and reconciliation
  • Fraud and risk tooling

Only in Vodeno

  • Core banking infrastructure
  • Card issuance via Mastercard
  • Lending and BNPL modules
  • White-label mobile apps
  • Digital onboarding and compliance
  • UK entity backed by NatWest

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Trustly

  • An e-commerce merchant wanting a lower-cost alternative or complement to card payment acceptancenot Vodeno
  • A gaming or gambling operator needing verified, instant payouts to players' bank accountsnot Vodeno
  • A merchant wanting instant refunds processed directly to a customer's bank account rather than card reversal delaysnot Vodeno
  • A business in a market with strong open banking adoption wanting pay-by-bank as a checkout optionnot Vodeno

Vodeno

  • A European retailer or e-commerce business wanting to embed savings, lending or BNPL products under its own brandnot Trustly
  • A UK business wanting banking-as-a-service backed specifically by NatWest's banking technology and licencenot Trustly
  • A fintech wanting white-label mobile banking app infrastructure rather than building its own from scratchnot Trustly
  • A company comparing banking-as-a-service providers that want to understand which underlying bank licence actually backs the product in their marketnot Trustly

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Trustly

  • It is majority-owned by Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, so its long-term roadmap is ultimately oriented toward an eventual sale or IPO rather than indefinite independent operation.
  • Consumer familiarity with paying by bank transfer still lags card payments in most markets, so merchants typically see it used as a secondary option rather than a full card replacement.
  • The 1.15 to 3.15% merchant fee range is not a single published rate, so a merchant cannot know its actual cost without a sales negotiation.
  • As with all open banking-dependent payment methods, reliability depends on the consistency of the underlying banks' own APIs, which Trustly does not control.
  • Its verified payout functionality is heavily used in gaming and gambling, a sector with additional regulatory scrutiny, which is worth factoring in when evaluating vendor risk exposure by association.

Vodeno

  • Its actual regulatory backing differs by geography, Aion Bank in continental Europe versus NatWest in the UK, so a customer must understand which entity and licence they are actually contracting under rather than assuming one uniform Vodeno product.
  • Pricing is entirely unpublished across both the European and UK businesses.
  • The scale of NatWest's investment (up to roughly £120 million) signals a business still working toward profitability, with NatWest itself targeting breakeven within five years of the venture launching, which is a meaningful timeline risk for a customer building long-term infrastructure dependency on it.
  • As banking-as-a-service infrastructure, any customer remains dependent on Vodeno's underlying bank partner maintaining its own licence and risk appetite, which is a layer of dependency beyond Vodeno's own commercial terms.
  • Product scope, such as lending and BNPL availability, may differ between the UK and European entities, so a company operating in both markets should not assume identical capability across the two.

Pricing, plan by plan

Trustly

On request
  • Trustly$undefined/month
    • Typical merchant cost of 1.15% to 3.15% depending on volume and market
    • Exact rate negotiated per merchant, not published as a flat card

Vodeno

On request
  • Vodeno$undefined/year
    • Platform licensing fee, not published
    • Terms differ between the European (Aion Bank) and UK (NatWest) entities

Which should you pick?

Choose Trustly if

  • You need pay by bank checkout.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want instant refunds.
Trustly review

Choose Vodeno if

  • You need core banking infrastructure.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want card issuance via mastercard.
Vodeno review

Questions people ask

Is Trustly or Vodeno better?
Neither clearly leads. Trustly starts at On request and Vodeno at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Trustly or Vodeno?
Trustly starts at On request and Vodeno at On request.
Does Trustly or Vodeno run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, API, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Trustly best used for?
Trustly is most often used for an e-commerce merchant wanting a lower-cost alternative or complement to card payment acceptance, a gaming or gambling operator needing verified, instant payouts to players' bank accounts, a merchant wanting instant refunds processed directly to a customer's bank account rather than card reversal delays, a business in a market with strong open banking adoption wanting pay-by-bank as a checkout option. Of those, an e-commerce merchant wanting a lower-cost alternative or complement to card payment acceptance and a gaming or gambling operator needing verified, instant payouts to players' bank accounts are not what Vodeno is typically brought in for.
What can Trustly do that Vodeno cannot?
Trustly covers Pay by bank checkout, Instant refunds, Verified payouts, Multi-market bank connectivity. Vodeno covers Core banking infrastructure, Card issuance via Mastercard, Lending and BNPL modules, White-label mobile apps.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Trustly: Who owns Trustly?

Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, holds a 51.1% majority stake; Alfven & Didrikson and BlackRock hold smaller stakes.

Vodeno: Does Vodeno hold its own banking licence?

No, it operates through partner banks, Aion Bank in continental Europe and NatWest in the UK.

Trustly: Is Trustly going public?

It has discussed an IPO but as of its most recent comments said one remained at least a year away.

Vodeno: Is the UK business the same as the European business?

They are related but distinct entities backed by different bank partners, with different investment structures.

Trustly: What does it typically cost a merchant?

Roughly 1.15% to 3.15% of transaction value depending on volume and market, negotiated per merchant.

Vodeno: How much has NatWest invested?

A capped commitment of up to roughly £120 million into the UK entity, plus a separate roughly €58 million investment in Vodeno Group for an 18% stake.

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