ClearBank rings in first full year of profitability
Embedded banking platform ClearBank achieved its first full year of profitability in 2023 as its revenues and client count continue to climb.
ClearBank records first full year of profitability
According to its latest financial statement, the British fintech accumulated a pre-tax profit of £18.4 million up to 31 December 2023, after recording a £7.1 million loss the year prior.
During the same period, it also managed to boost its total income by 91% to £111.3 million.
Although ClearBank announced its first monthly profitability in November 2022, its most recent performance marks the first time it’s been able to achieve this feat on an annual basis.
Some of the primary drivers behind this success were its 54% YoY increase in payment volumes, which totalled 108 million for 2023, alongside a 103% increase in its deposits, which now stand at £6.1 billion and are held with the Bank of England.
Its deposit-taking endeavours have benefitted heavily from the UK’s current high-interest environment, which it says has resulted in more clients “looking to increase protection and provide better returns”.
Speaking via a video statement, CEO Charles McManus comments that the fintech is now serving 221 live clients, and has “moved up the curve in relation to larger and larger institutional clients”.
He says that a key part of this growth was derived from the company’s client base’s ability to offer financial services to their own customers through its embedded banking model, a function he claims has risen 93% YoY.
In an attempt to support this scale operationally, the fintech made a total of 330 new hires throughout last year, having named Mark Fairless as its new chief financial officer, Megan Cooper as chief product officer, and Jonny Fry as group head of digital asset strategy. Additionally, it notably unveiled four new appointments to its board in October in an attempt to steer its international expansion plans.
Currently, the fintech is in hot pursuit of a European banking licence, saying it expects to action a full EU launch “later this year”.
