Cardiff-based fintech startup Burbank, which has pioneered the world’s first Card-Present over Internet (CPoI®) payments technology, has been crowned the winner of the inaugural Startups 100 Tech Award.
The award honours businesses that demonstrate innovative and impactful technology practises.
This revolutionary fintech startup has also ranked 8th in the 2026 Startups 100 Index powered by Sage, the UK’s longest-running index of promising new businesses.
What is Burbank?
Founders: Justin Pike
Year founded: 2021
How Burbank stands out in the fintech industry:
In development for over a decade, Burbank has created a safe and effective way for online shoppers to make purchases by tapping their card over their phone, just like in-store.
This world-first Card-Present over Internet (CPoI®), lets consumers tap their physical card onto their mobile device and enter a PIN online, so they don’t have to store any of their payment credentials online.
Having closed a gap between modern smartphones and legacy payment infrastructure to fundamentally change who bears the risk of online fraud, it’s no wonder Startups.co.uk named Burbank their 2026 Tech Award winner.
The company also secured £5m in seed funding in March 2025.
Why is Burbank’s technology revolutionary?
Last year, multiple large retailers spent months recovering from major cyberattacks that resulted in customer data being stolen.
Merchants are predicted to lose $91bn to online payment fraud in 2028, but Burbank’s technology could put a substantial dent in this figure.
That’s because, with CPoI®, if the card is real and the PIN is correct, payment processors don’t need to worry about issues like false positives or chargebacks.
With everything stored in the cloud, and no keys kept on the phone, Burbank ensured that even if a consumer’s device is compromised, the sensitive payment credentials remain safe on the server side.
Founder and CEO of Burbank, Justin Pike, comments: “Burbank is excited to be featured in the Startups 100 index and to be the recipient of the inaugural Startups 100 Tech Award as a startup that has achieved the unprecedented.
It is a fantastic recognition of the work we have put into bringing the tap and PIN experience into digital channels for the first time with CPoI®, and we are proud to be named among the UK’s top startups.”
Editor of Startups.co.uk, Zohra Huda, comments: “2025 has been the year of the cyberattack. With retailers and merchants under siege, Burbank’s secure and world-first CPoI technology arrives at a moment when the industry desperately needs a safer, simpler way to pay.
“The competition this year was fierce, but Burbank stood out for its ambition, delivery, and potential for global impact. We’re delighted to name it the winner of our first ever Technology Award in the Startups 100 Index 2026.”
