Metro Bank vows to employ 500 staff by next year as it opens second branch
HIGH STREET upstart Metro Bank said it would employ more than 500 staff by the end of next year as it opened its second branch in the UK.
Chief executive Craig Donaldson told City A.M. the retail deposit taker, which aims to attract disillusioned customers from other major lenders, would have 200 employees by Christmas. It aims to more than double the number in 2011.
“We’ve been overwhelmed by customer interest, and we’re recruiting staff aggressively to meet the number of savers joining,” Donaldson said. Metro met its one-year target for account openings within a month of launching, he added.
Metro opened an outlet in Earl’s Court today to complement its existing site in Holborn. The institution plans to unveil branches in Fulham Broadway and Borehamwood this year before opening a further eight in 2011. Within a decade it could have 200 branches on high streets across the?UK. Although Metro admits its interest rates will not top newspapers’ “best buy” tables, it sells itself on seven-days-a-week availability and a late 8pm closing time.