New challenger bank, The Services Family, readies for launch in the UK
A new bank is coming to the UK, The Services Family
The Services Family bank will cater for the UK military personnel, veterans and their families. Sopra Steria’s technology will underpin its operations.
The digital bank is being created by The Services Family Ltd (TSFL), a financial services firm set up two years ago by two military veterans. It is going through a process of obtaining a banking licence.
It plans to open for business by Q4 2016 and introduce products and services in a phased manner. To begin with, it will commence trading as a mortgage provider. By 2017, it hopes to become a fully licensed retail bank.
France-based tech giant Sopra Steria and its Sopra Banking Software subsidiary will provide full banking and non-banking services for The Services Family.
The solution will be underpinned by Sopra’s core banking system, Sopra Banking Platform, and digital channels software. It will be delivered on a managed services basis.
Sopra Steria says that relying on a single provider for end-to-end services “ensures The Service Family remains competitive and at the forefront of the banking revolution”.
Sopra Steria will also support the company on its way to obtaining a full deposit/banking licence.
Michael Jenkins, founding director of TSFL, says: “It was essential for us to choose the right partner due to the digital nature of The Services Family bank.
“Sopra Steria was the natural choice because of its innovative approach and willingness to support us in developing a phased approach to our banking services, in addition to its proven expertise in this space.”
Why TSFL?
The TSFL founders say military veterans, personnel and families find it hard to get fair access to financial services due to “their mobile lifestyle, complex career profiles and perceived risk profiles of the Armed Forces”.
TSFL, built on “military” values, will provide consumers with a real choice of “culture and behaviours” in financial services, they explain.
“A company with a familiar and comforting feel for those with links to, or respect for, the military and public service. A fair, transparent and trustworthy company that sets its priority as doing its best for its customers, doing the right thing, the right way and doing it for the right reasons.”
More details on who’s who among the UK’s challenger banks can be found here.
