Payments via mobile number

Bank customers will be able to pay bills via mobile numbers from 29 April, the Payments Council has announced.

Customers will also be able to register for the new Paym service - pronounced "Pay Em"- from today (Wednesday 2 April).

The system means that anyone wanting to make a payment no longer has to ask for a bank account number and sort code.

Providing both parties are registered, the payment can be made via a mobile phone number.

Customers of the following banks can now register to link their mobile number with their bank account: Bank of Scotland, Barclays, Cumberland Building Society, Halifax, HSBC, Lloyds, Santander and TSB.

Other banks - including NatWest, RBS and First Direct - will join the scheme later in the year.

The Payments Council, which oversees all bank transactions in the UK, said the payments would be perfectly secure.

Those wishing to make payments via mobile phone numbers will still need to use their banking apps, which require customers to log on to their accounts.

Account-holders will need to visit their own bank's website for more details.

Similar systems have already been introduced by Barclays and RBS NatWest.