Scoban licenced to join private banking market
NEW PRIVATE bank Scoban is set to open its doors late this summer after the Bank of England gave it the green light to enter the market.
It is the second new entrant under the new licencing regime established last year, and the first to enter the private banking market which serves high net worth clients.
The lender has not yet decided the brand name under which it will operate.
However, it has trademarked the name Raeburn Private Bank, a title which is thought to be a lead candidate in the decision-making process.
Scoban’s licence has been approved on the condition that it raises sufficient capital in the next 12 months.
The private bank has already raised £8m from individual investors, from whom it plans to raise another £4m.
It is also tapping up institutional investors to raise £36m.
The bank was set up by former executives at RBS’s private bank Adam and Company, including Scoban’s executive chairman Ray Entwistle and chief operating officer Stuart Alexander.
The bank will be headquartered in Edinburgh but is also opening a London office in Mayfair.
“A lot of people are waiting for us to open the doors in London,” Entwistle told City A.M.
“It is a very important place at the minute worldwide. You just have to look at the different countries where there is a lot of disarray to see that people are looking for safe havens like London to place their money.”