How to grow your payments app with scrap metal dealers and recyclers
By SendPay Business · · 2 min read
Scrap metal dealers and recyclers weigh copper, brass, aluminium, steel and old cars, then pay the seller for what they bring in. Sellers range from builders, plumbers and electricians clearing offcuts to collectors doing rounds in a van. Yards then sell on to bigger merchants and processors. In some countries, including the UK, scrap dealers are not allowed to pay in cash, so they need a quick, recorded way to pay. A payments app that pays sellers straight after weighing, keeps a clear record of every purchase and makes it easy to get paid by buyers can win these yards, and every seller who gets paid sees your app.
Talk to scrap yards
Ask local scrap metal dealers and recyclers:
- How do you pay people who bring in metal, and how long does it take?
- What records do you have to keep for each purchase?
- Do regular collectors or trades have accounts with you?
- How do the bigger yards or processors you sell to pay you?
Pay sellers straight after weighing
Paying the seller to their phone or account as soon as the load is weighed means no cash on site, a shorter queue and a record of every payment.
Keep clear records
Each payment carries the date, the seller and the amount, which makes it easier to keep the records many yards are asked for.
Grow through collectors and trades
Collectors, builders and tradespeople sell to more than one yard. When they get paid quickly through your app, they tell others and look for yards that use it.
Build it
Create your own financial platform.
Pick a template, name it, brand it, preview every page before you pay. Your brand, your users, your fees.
Build my platform →Questions people ask
What about skip hire firms?
The skip hire firms guide covers taking payment when a skip is booked, often over the phone.
Skip hire firms →What about house clearance firms?
The house clearance and junk removal guide covers quotes from photos, deposits to book a job and payment when the van is loaded.
House clearance and junk removal firms →Can I call it a bank?
In most countries "bank" is a protected word you can only use with a banking licence. Call it an account, a wallet, an app or a platform. The accounts and payments behind a SendPay Business platform are powered by licensed partners.
Is there a step-by-step plan I can follow?
Yes. The free launch checklist takes you from picking your people and naming your app to setting fees, going live and winning your first ten customers.
Digital bank app launch checklist →How do I start?
Pick a template, name it and preview every page before you pay. Your platform can be live on your own domain within 24 hours of confirmation.
Build my platform →Read next
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. SendPay Business is a technology company, not a bank, and does not take deposits; regulated services on the platforms are provided by licensed partners. PayPal, Patreon and Substack are named as reference points only and are not affiliated with SendPay Business.