Atom Bank plans £150m shareholder funding round
UK challenger Atom Bank is planning to raise £150 million in a shareholder injection – its largest equity raise to date.
BBVA holds a 40% stake in Atom Bank
According to Sky News sources, the bank aims to go ahead with the raise in the Autumn. Investment bank Citi is advising.
If the bank hit its £150 million target it would take the total it has secured from shareholders to around £600 million. Atom Bank is also pursuing an initial public offering in 2022.
Atom’s existing investors include BBVA, Toscafund, and Woodford Patient Capital Trust. All participated in the bank’s last funding, a £50 million raise in July 2019.
BBVA is believed to have been interested in a takeover of the UK challenger. Rumours swirled in January 2019 that the Spanish giant had its eyes on Atom, but they never materialised.
Founded in 2014, Atom Bank opened for business in 2016. It claims to be the first challenger bank in the UK market.
It has a collection of technology platforms, including FIS’s Profile core banking system, Wolters Kluwer’s OneSumX for regulatory reporting, and Phoebus Software for secured business lending.
The bank’s total lending grew by 76% in 2019 to £2.4 billion, supported by growth in deposits from £1.4 billion to £1.8 billion.
In late 2019, the bank picked Google Cloud to underpin its application and product development. The bank had been using a third-party data centre since 2015.
Related: Starling Bank losses doubled to £52m
