High street banks’ SME lending comeback won’t rattle challengers June 20, 2025 High street banks are flocking back to small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) lending but face a battle against fintechs which have captured their spot. The Big Four banks have shed their market stronghold in SME lending. Research from the British Business Bank in March revealed challenger banks make up around 60 per cent of gross [...]
High street banks ramp up SME lending to highest since 2022 June 16, 2025 High street banks are scaling up their lending to small businesses, with the first quarter of 2022 hitting the highest amount since 2022. Lenders issued £4.6bn worth of loans in the first three months of the year marking a 14 per cent year-on-year jump. The rise was driven by a surge of lending to agriculture, [...]
Will fintech banks survive falling interest rates? June 13, 2025 Fintech lenders have accelerated their swing to profitability after interest rates spiked. The UK’s neobanks pocketed record revenues in the last 12 months. Revolut’s takings grew 72 per cent topping £3.1bn. Meanwhile Monzo’s revenue hit £1bn for the first time. But this came as interest rates maintained a post-financial crisis high of 5.25 per cent [...]
Revolut, Allica, Zopa: Analysts back ‘enduring value’ of UK fintech May 13, 2025 UK fintech received a wealth of praise from Peel Hunt analysts in a fresh sector note following a year of rapid growth for the industry. Fintech firms booked record profits in 2024 and have transitioned from disrupting the banking climate to direct competition with traditional lenders. Revolut topped 52.5 million customers in 2024, surpassing Europe’s [...]
Zilch: UK’s fastest-growing fintech unicorn balloons customer base May 12, 2025 UK fintech darling Zilch has revealed it has topped five million customers and exceeded £4bn in total sales to date for retailers. The firm, which uses buy now pay later (BNPL) services to split consumer purchases, has also confirmed its revenue hit £145m in revenue run rate on the back of its rapid rise since [...]
Britain’s SMEs must get over their aversion to debt to ramp up growth May 8, 2025 Britain's small businesses can power growth, but only with a rebooted SME finance market, writes Allica Bank CEO Richard Davies.
Revealed: The 2025 City AM Awards Winners May 7, 2025 The winners of the 2025 City AM Awards were unveiled at a glittering ceremony in the heart of the Square Mile last night in front of 500 guests. The gongs were handed out on stage in the Guildhall, following a speech from former Bank of England Chief Economist Andy Haldane. City AM Editor-in-Chief, Christian May, [...]
Rachel Reeves has promised UK fintech the world – now she must deliver May 4, 2025 Judgement day looms for Rachel Reeves, and UK fintech will be handing her the verdict. In a keynote speech at Innovate Finance’s 11th global summit, the Chancellor confirmed the Treasury’s inaugural Financial Services Growth and Competitiveness Strategy would be published on 15 July. Reeves has lauded the industry’s growth and touted the achievements of fintech [...]
Clearbank, Allica, Atom: The fast-growing future of UK fintech April 19, 2025 Fintech has planted its flag firmly in the Square Mile. Industry giants Monzo and Starling have become household names, helping London to established itself as a leading global fintech hub. KPMG’s bi-annual fintech report showed UK fintech investment was at £7.9bn last year. And now young firms are growing faster than ever, promising to send a [...]
The UK’s fastest growing fintech Allica Bank delivers another record year April 16, 2025 Allica Bank, the UK’s fastest growing fintch, nearly doubled its profit in the last year after another period of rapid growth. The digital bank, which caters towards small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), increased pre-tax profits 86 per cent to £29.9m. Lending activity grew over £1bn in 2024 and revenue shot up 68 per cent to [...]