Exclusive: Bank of London crowned fastest-growing challenger amassing £300m since getting licence August 31, 2023 The Bank of London has amassed £300m in deposits within six months of taking client money, making it comfortably the UK’s fastest growing SME-focused challenger. Chief executive Anthony Watson said that the bank has been “inundated with demand” since exiting its regulatory restrictions in February this year. Businesses in Britain have been “under-served by both [...]
Challenger Cynergy Bank secures £20m funding boost August 21, 2023 Challenger bank Cynergy Bank has secured a £20m Tier 2 investment from British Business Investments in a boost for its expansion plans. The funding will go towards supporting Cynergy Bank’s growth plans, which include delivering over £250m of new lending across the SME and property sectors. The challenger bank was formerly a part of the [...]
UK’s newest bank Griffin secures £11m in funding round as it plots expansion June 7, 2023 Griffin, the UK’s newest bank, has gathered £11m in a fundraising round just a few months after it secured its banking licence. The funding round was led by venture capital firm Mass Mutual Ventures, with existing investors Seedcamp and EQT Ventures participating in the fundraise. Griffin said the funds will go towards leaving the ‘mobilisation’ [...]
Challenger banks hunt for acquisitions as rising interest rates reveal opportunities June 7, 2023 Challenger banks are increasingly on the lookout for acquisition opportunities as rising interest rates reveal takeover opportunities in the sector. Nigel Terrington, chief executive of Paragon Bank, told City A.M. that they “continue to look for opportunities” having made four acquisitions in seven years. Terrington noted that “in environments like this, some lenders are not [...]
Why have UK banks been insulated from US panic? Regulation, regulation, regulation March 24, 2023 Regional lenders in the US have been in the spotlight since the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) with investors concerned they might be at risk from an avalanche of deposit flights. Since the collapse of SVB and Signature, shares in the US KBW regional banks index have fallen over 10 per cent. In the [...]
Small businesses risk running out of cash after post Brexit banking rules rollout February 16, 2023 New banking regulations could increase the cost of small business lending by around a third and “fundamentally change” the market as debate around the implementation of international banking rules in the UK intensifies. Regulators in the UK are scrutinising the latest round of Basel regulations, the global regulatory overhaul prompted by the financial crisis. Concerns [...]
Jupiter to sell £100m stake in Starling Bank at steep discount on April valuation September 22, 2022 FTSE 250 asset manager Jupiter is in advanced talks to sell a £100m stake in Starling Bank at a heavy discount on its most recent valuation of £2.5bn. Jupiter Fund Management is in talks with several of the challenger bank’s existing investors, with a view to offloading a seven per cent share in the firm, [...]
Shawbrook owners put plans to sell the challenger bank on ice September 4, 2022 The owners of Shawbrook Bank have reportedly shelved their plans to sell the lender. Private equity firms BC Partners and Pollen Street Capital were seeking bids of around £2bn for the challenger bank, which specialises in lending to small and medium-sized companies. The Financial Times reported, however, that the firms had failed to attract offers [...]
‘Break the chains’ of regulation holding back challenger banks, MPs say August 30, 2022 A “one-size-fits-all” approach to regulating UK lenders has failed and watchdogs need to “break the chains” restricting the growth of challenger banks, a group of MPs said today.
Atom Bank set for first year of profit after three quarters in the black July 18, 2022 Digital lender Atom Bank is on track to post its first full year of profits after revealing today it had spent three quarters in the black in the full year to March. The Durham-based bank, founded by chief executive Mark Mullen in 2014, notched underlying pre-tax losses for the year of £2m, a £34m improvement [...]