UK competition authorities have approved the acquisition by the Post Office of the bill payment service Payzone.

Now the Competition and Markets Authority has approved the deal, the Post Office has access to an additional network of over 13,000 Payzone payment outlets that are open 100 hours a week or more, as well as bill payment technology.

Debbie Smith, Post Office Retail Chief Executive, commented: “We’re thrilled to welcome Payzone’s bill payments network into the wider Post Office group. Bill payments are a vital service for customers, particularly for many vulnerable or elderly customers and people who don’t have online access so rely on paying their bills over the counter.

“This deal allows us to more than double our bill payment network.  Through our combined reach of 25,000 bill payment outlets we are now in an even stronger position to compete for new and bigger bill payment contracts, helping to bring in more customers for Post Office branches and Payzone retailers alike.”

There is potential for the new Post Office acquisition to grow, with half a billion bill payment transactions in the last year across the UK.

Payzone also has a relationship with the parcel shop chain, Hubbox, with many of its outlets acting as Hubbox locations.