Fees: 1.5% + 20p per transaction for UK cards, 2.5% + 20p for international. No monthly fee, no setup fee. Apple Pay + Google Pay included at the same rate. UK direct-debit (Bacs) available separately.

KYC: hours to days for a new UK limited company. Stripe will ask for proof of business, director ID, and bank account verification. Fast enough that you can be live the day after you incorporate.

Raffle position: Stripe accepts free-entry prize draws as standard commerce — provided the landing page shows the free option and you're operating a legitimate competition. Occasional account holds happen if Stripe's risk system flags chargeback patterns or sudden volume spikes. Keep dispute rates under 1%.

Best for: launching a new site, validating the product, running through your first £0-£100k/mo. Fees become noticeable above £50k/mo but still manageable.

Fees: typically 0.6-1.2% + interchange + 10-15p per transaction for UK cards once underwritten — meaningfully cheaper than Stripe at volume. Exact rate depends on your card mix, volume tier, and chargeback history.

KYC: 1-3 weeks. You'll provide trading history, projected volumes, T&Cs, sample transaction flows, and director details. Some operators get an MID (merchant ID) approved on terms — sometimes with deferred go-live until the website is launch-ready.

Raffle position: Cashflows specifically underwrite UK prize-draw operators (we use them on Lucky Turbo). They understand the free-entry route model and don't treat raffle volume as inherent risk the way some processors do.

Best for: operators doing £20k/mo+ where fee savings vs Stripe pay back the slower setup, and operators who want a UK acquirer rather than a US-based payment platform.

Fees: custom — typically interchange + 0.2-0.6% + small per-transaction fee. Genuinely cheaper than Cashflows at very high volume but rarely worth the integration effort below £200k/mo.

KYC: 4-12 weeks with a relationship manager. Expect underwriting interviews, financial review, and detailed business plan questions. Not a self-serve flow.

Raffle position: Worldpay underwrites prize draws as long as you can demonstrate operational maturity. They want to see good chargeback rates, proper compliance, and steady volume — they aren't underwriting brand-new operators.

Best for: mature raffle operators doing £200k/mo+ where the fee savings genuinely move the bottom line and where the enterprise tooling earns its keep.

3DS exemptions to ask for: Transaction Risk Analysis (TRA) for low-risk transactions, recurring-payment exemptions for repeat customers, low-value exemptions for sub-£30 purchases. All three reduce checkout friction.

AVS (Address Verification System): matches the cardholder's address against the bank's record. Required by most acquirers; mismatches generally result in declines or extra friction. Collect the full UK address (postcode + house number minimum) and pass it on every transaction.

Apple Pay / Google Pay handle SCA via biometrics — counted as strong authentication, so the 3DS step is often skipped entirely. Another reason these wallets convert better than raw card entry.