Monument Bank partners with fintech Firenze February 25, 2025 Monument Bank has entered a partnership with fintech Firenze to boost the lender’s stronghold among its mass-affluent consumer base. The challenger bank gave Firenze a £160m backing with the aim to scale up its Lombard loan offering for wealth management firms. The Manchester-headquartered fintech, which is just over a year old, offers loans against secure [...]
Zopa doubles office footprint in move to Canary Wharf February 25, 2025 Fintech unicorn Zopa is set to double its office footprint with plans to relocate to a new headquarters in Canary Wharf. The new office, located at 20 Water Street in Canary Wharf, will span 44,000 square feet and host Zopa’s 900 current employees. The British digital bank, which was founded in 2020, said the move [...]
HSBC Innovation Banking bets £30m on fintech Clearscore February 25, 2025 HSBC Innovation Banking has backed global fintech Clearscore lending £30m in debt financing. After first partnering in 2017, the fintech said the continued support of the bank will help drive further business growth across domestic and international markets. Clearscore credited the lender for its “vital role in its global expansion” with the financial marketplace now [...]
Natwest Boxed launches savings account with The AA February 24, 2025 Natwest’s financial services platform Natwest Boxed has partnered with The AA to launch an instant savings account. Boxed, which comes from a joint venture between the FTSE 100 lender and European fintech Vodeno, will leverage its embedded finance products for AA customers starting from March 2025. The new savings account will be FSCS-protected and customers [...]
Ex-Lloyds executive wants to ‘fintech’ mortgages February 21, 2025 A former Lloyds executive wants to accelerate the mortgage process by bringing AI into the mix. Stuart Cheetham worked at Lloyds bank for over a decade, spanning senior roles across Asia. He was chief executive in Hong Kong and managing director in Japan. However, since departing the Big Four bank, Cheetham founded his own company [...]
Plus500 announces new buyback as investment plans pay off February 18, 2025 Revenue at the fintech trading platform rose six per cent year-on-year to $768.3m (£609.3m) thanks to a six per cent increase in trading income.
UK fintech investment hits four-year low February 18, 2025 Fintech investment in the UK had another sluggish year with new data showing it sunk to a four-year low in 2024. KPMG’s bi-annual fintech report showed UK fintech investment fell by 27 per cent to £7.9bn last year, down from £10.1bn in 2023. Despite this, the UK managed to scoop up more funding than France, [...]
London named Europe’s ‘unicorn capital’ for fintechs February 13, 2025 London leads Europe in fintech ‘unicorns’, a title given to privately-held startups valued at over $1bn, reinforcing its dominance as a global breeding ground for tech unicorns. According to Hurun’s latest index, nearly 80 per cent of the UK’s unicorns and future unicorns are based in London, with fintech being the most dominant sector. Of [...]
The five UK fintechs tipped to reach unicorn status February 13, 2025 The UK fintech sector is experiencing lightning growth, with several companies on the road to gaining ‘unicorn’ status, a title given to privately held startups valued at over $1bn (£780m). According to Hurun’s recent index, a handful of fintech firms are leading the charge, with valuations of $500m and above. These firms span various financial [...]
Lloyds partners with ‘Duolingo of money’ to target Gen Z February 10, 2025 Lloyds Bank has partnered with fintech platform Doshi to improve young people’s financial literacy through “gamified learning”. The Big Four bank is launching a six month pilot, targeting 18 to 24 year-olds to make financial education “fun and accessible”. Doshi’s founder Daniel Rose told City AM high street banks do not have “much time left” [...]