Is The AI buzz is fading? MTD for ITSA is getting real. It's time for firms to wake up and build systems that actually work.
Accountex London 2025 felt different. Not just busier, but louder, more urgent.
Across the floor, the energy wasn’t about chasing shiny tech or the next app drop. It was about clarity. About control. About the uncomfortable truth that many firms are under significant compliance burdens due to regulatory changes, stuck with tech they don’t fully use, and yet serving clients who expect more support than ever.
We counted 17 speaker sessions on MTD, a not-so-gentle reminder that the deadline looms. AI conversations were there, for sure, but the mood? Less hype, more “so what?”. The firms that stood out weren’t shouting about innovation. They were quietly delivering it, built into workflows, not bolted on top.
Here’s the 5 messages and reflections that really cut through the noise for us at Modulr.
1. You are your competitive advantage
2. Fragmented systems are draining everyone’s energy
3. MTD isn’t just about ticking boxes – it’s a reset button
4. Late payments are still a nightmare – and SMEs can't solve it alone
5. The sum of all this? Why do we keep coming back?
1. You are your competitive advantage
Among the AI demos and talks of automation, it was Will Farnell of Farnell Clarke who brought the room back down to earth.
“Everyone has the same tech. What makes you different? Your people.”
It was a timely reminder that while tools evolve fast, trust and human connection remain the real currency. This wasn’t a rejection of software, far from it, Will was talking about the space created by tech for you to be – well – you.
Your edge isn’t your tools. It’s how you use them to offer clarity, care, and meaningful support. If you’re acting like a robot, don’t be surprised if a robot replaces you.
The tools are there to make the processes you do simpler, to find out more about how to build these into your processes to become a fractional CFO read our research and whitepaper to find out more.
2. Fragmented systems are draining everyone's energy
Every firm knows the pain: endless platform switching, scattered approvals, clunky reconciliations. Joe Lines from Modulr put it plainly – too many tools, not enough integration.
It’s the kind of operational drag that saps energy from your team and creates confusion for clients. And it’s not just inefficient – it’s unsustainable, especially as firms scale or look to offer more strategic services.
The real issue isn’t whether a platform can do one thing well. It’s whether all your tools can talk to each other – and help your team work smarter, not harder.
That’s why integration was such a hot topic at Accountex. Because in 2025, the firms making real progress aren’t adding more tools. They’re connecting the right ones – and building seamless, controlled workflows around them.
If your AP process still involves chasing invoices across inboxes and spreadsheets, it’s time to streamline. Explore how Modulr helps automate accounts payable, from invoice capture to bulk global payments.
3. MTD isn't about ticking boxes – it's a reset button
There was no drama in Jonathon Athow’s presentation on MTD – and that was the point. His delivery was matter-of-fact, grounded in the numbers, and crystal clear in its message: this is happening.
“Collect the right tax, pay out the right support” – HMRC’s job is straightforward on paper, but delivering it at scale takes more than good intentions. It takes modern infrastructure. MTD is the foundation.
From VAT to income tax, the direction of travel is fixed. Digital records, quarterly updates, pre-populated fields, and cleaner data are all designed to drive fewer errors, faster decisions, and better outcomes – for both taxpayers and the state.
The firms who win? They’ll go beyond compliance and help clients use these changes to their advantage. That means putting the right systems in place now – not just to stay compliant, but to take control of the full tax journey.
Modulr is already playing a foundational role in this transformation—recently securing a landmark contract with HMRC to deliver Confirmation of Payee services under the Open Banking DPS framework. It’s part of a broader push to make payments faster, safer, and more reliable – especially in high-trust environments like tax, payroll, and benefit disbursement.
Because modern compliance isn’t just about submitting on time. It’s about building resilient, intelligent systems that clients can depend on every step of the way.
4. Late payments are still a nightmare – and SMEs can't solve it alone
One of the most lively conversations at Accountex came from Adeel Hyder (Starling), Chip Mahan (Sage), and Liz Barclay (UK Government), who tackled the late payments crisis head-on. The mood? Frustrated.
“Cash flow is the main thing that keeps people up at night.” – Chip Mahan, Sage.
The burden still falls on small businesses to chase payments, while bigger players bury delays behind bloated processes and red tape. The result? Wasted time. Withheld growth. Businesses squeezed at both ends.
“We don’t need a 100+ day approval system.” – Liz Barclay, UK Government.
There was a clear call from the audience of this speaker session: this cannot be solved by SMEs alone. Government ambitions and regulatory shifts might help, such as the National Payments Vision and the Fair Payment Code – but the immediate opportunity lies in control, specifically fixing the part of the process you can control.
Because while we can’t force companies to improve their terms, we can ensure that internal delays, payment file errors, manual approvals and platform switching aren’t making things worse.
Modulr helps eliminate these friction points – streamlining how firms and SMEs pay staff, suppliers and tax authorities, with faster, more reliable payment flows that don’t hold things up when the moment to pay finally arrives.
In the battle for better cash flow, control matters. Let’s not wait on someone else to clean up the system – let’s make it smoother where we can.
5. The sum of all this? Why do we keep coming back?
Every year, we return to Accountex to hear what’s changed. And every year, we end up talking about the same things: tech overwhelm, fragmented systems, the pressure on SMEs, and the slow pace of change.
So what’s the takeaway?
Maybe it’s that progress isn’t about the newest tool. It’s about choosing better systems, designing better services, and empowering people to do better work.
The future of accounting won’t be won by firms with the fanciest AI. It’ll be won by those who connect the dots – and deliver real, integrated value.
You don’t need to wait for another product launch. The most powerful lever for change is already in your business: you.
So ask yourself – what are the few smart changes you can make now to spend less time on low-value tasks that you don’t enjoy, and more time doing the work that grows your firm, deepens client relationships, and makes you better at what you do?
