UK


NatWest pilots AI compliance technology with Recordsure

UK-based high street bank NatWest is trialling Recordsure’s regtech recording and analysis solution “to improve and monitor the quality of information and advice provided during regulated customer conversations”.

nCino wins first client outside US, OakNorth

UK challenger OakNorth Bank has deployed nCino’s Bank Operating System – the first financial institution outside of the US to use the platform. According to the pair, the bank “liked that” nCino was built on Salesforce.com, allowing it to extend its use of this customer relationship management (CRM) platform. Bank Operating System combines CRM, loan […]

InvestCloud brings fintech incubator to London

US-based InvestCloud is going to launch a fintech incubator and accelerator at its European headquarters in Soho, London. Dubbed InvestCloud Innovation Centre, it will enable start-ups and established firms to create wealth management solutions supported by the InvestCloud platform.

More jobs to go from RBS in UK to India

Job-cutting spree continues at the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) – 443 jobs are to go from its business loans department. Many of these will be moved to India.

Starling Bank preps for future with new features

UK challenger bank Starling has launched a “Spending Insights” tool and an online community for its users – and it is setting out its future plans. Spending Insights is probably self-explanatory. It works in the app and the bank says it gives users ideas about where they can save money. It shows customers how much […]

Brokers are jokers with Trading 212 zero commission service

Don’t go for broke or a broker – Trading 212 has unveiled the UK’s first zero commission share trading platform. The firm says it allows investors to make ten trades per month and up to £10,000 equity per trade commission free, which it estimates will cover the needs of approximately 90% of its customers. To […]

Moronic UK hacker exploits CYBG loophole to steal £100,000

A British hacker/moron has been jailed for the theft of nearly £100,000 from Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banking Group (CYBG) by exploiting a bug in its online banking system. According to the BBC, 24-year-old James Ejankowski defrauded the bank of more than £99,000 in December 2016. He spent the money on a BMW, a Range Rover […]

Colu launches local digital currency for London

Colu, a blockchain-powered platform provider, has unveiled its second currency in the UK – the “Local Pound, East London”. The firm’s idea is to provide people in East London with a digital, localised currency and so create a “closed-loop economy”. It uses Colu’s digital wallet app, and individuals can pay from a smartphone. It is […]

Barclays hit with fraud charge over Qatar capital raising

The UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has charged Barclays and four of its former workers with conspiracy to commit fraud over capital raising arrangements with Qatar Holding and Challenger Universal. The charge also includes the provision of unlawful financial assistance contrary to the Companies Act 1985. The charges relate to events in June and October […]

UK regulator calls for feedback on consumer access to insurance

Like a bird of paradise, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is calling again – and this time for views and evidence concerning consumers’ access to insurance. This FCA’s paper looks more broadly at access issues related to insurance but specifically (and a non-fintech point) seeks views on “how consumers with cancer or those in […]

TSB drops Visa to issue Mastercard debit and credit cards in 2018

Visa is no longer a pleaser as TSB will issue Mastercard debit cards to all its current account customers in 2018 as part of a seven-year agreement. The bank says it will continue to issue Mastercard credit cards over the same term. The agreement means the two organisations “will partner to offer additional payment solutions”. […]

Investors to the rescue for UK’s Co-op Bank?

The UK’s Co-operative Bank’s life may not be over just yet as it reveals it is in advanced discussions with existing investors over a rescue package. As reported in February, the bank was put up for sale – with the minority investor Co-op Group saying it is “supportive of the plan to find the bank […]

HSBC unveils £10bn fund for UK SMEs

HSBC has launched a £10 billion lending fund for SMEs in the UK as it looks to tap into this lively market. The bank says it continues to be open to lending, having approved 91% of small business lending applications in the last year. Ian Stuart, UK CEO, HSBC, says: “We want to put SMEs […]

Monese debuts direct debits to challenge traditional banks

Mobile-only bank Monese has unveiled direct debit functionality for its customers – a move designed to offer services closer to that of a traditional high street bank account. Alongside this, it has also gained access to Faster Payments, so customers can send funds to accounts outside or within the UK with a “quicker transfer”. In […]

UK regulator reveals second wave of sandbox start-ups

The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has unveiled the second wave of firms that have made it into its regulatory sandbox. As reported in 2015, the sandbox allows businesses to test out new products and services without “incurring the normal regulatory consequences”. The move is part of the FCA’s Project Innovate, which aims to boost […]

Circle rounds on rivals with free cross-border payments

Payments services provider Circle is offering its customers in the US, UK and Europe the ability to send and receive money across borders with no fees and no mark-up on foreign exchange (FX) rates. The firm says it is “just like sending email or sharing photos” – meaning it’s “free and instant”. There will be […]

AI will make humans redundant in security, but that’s a good thing

If security is too big a question for us to answer, maybe it’s time to hand the responsibility over to the machines, reports Telecoms.com (Banking Technology‘s sister publication). During a panel at “AI and Machine Learning World”, part of tech event TechXLR8 in London, artificial intelligence (AI) was discussed. What might seem quite a controversial […]

Infographic: financial institutions optimistic for first UK CRS filing

An online survey carried out amongst our readers in the run up to the UK’s first Common Reporting Standard (CRS) submission has found respondents largely optimistic about how their first transmittal would go; were appreciative of the support given to them by their IT departments and thought that HMRC and OECD had done a good job in communicating with them. Their primary concerns were their ability to pull data from their internal systems and keeping up with compliance.

Fintech outside London – part 3

Our tour of the UK fintech scene concludes in this third instalment of the report. We started from the south of the country, then travelled west and are now travelling through the northern England and Scotland.

Fintech billionaire wolf whistles during meeting to address sexism

The career of an elderly billionaire lies in tatters after he decided that a meeting to address sexism in the fintech industry was the right time to wolf whistle at the crowd and boast about his sexual exploits. David Blooperman, CEO and founder of identity and internet of things service provider ID-IOT, was invited to […]

The Monday mindset: 12 June 2017

Fintech zeitgeist! Every Monday, we might look back at last week; look ahead to this week; share a few thoughts (our own or others); or discuss anything that catches our eye. This week, Antony Peyton, Banking Technology’s deputy editor, with the help of many “expert comments” (bless you for those), briefly mulls over the aftermath […]

Yes, (financial inclusion) minister?

In today’s seemingly financially connected world, where we can send money to one another via our smartphones, and manage our spending habits via apps, it’s pretty hard to believe that financial exclusion is still a reality in the UK. Yet, a shocking 1.7 million adults in the UK still don’t have access to financial services.

RBS joins forces with RocketSpace UK for new tech campus

San-Francisco based RocketSpace, with the support of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and NatWest, has opened its campus in London for fintech and tech start-ups. Housed in NatWest’s (a subsidiary of RBS) Regents House in London, the campus is the “first of its kind” in the capital and RocketSpace’s only international location. The campus occupies […]

UK challenger Bank of Lambeth preps for launch

London-based Bank of Lambeth is getting ready to enter the UK’s highly competitive challenger bank arena. The community bank is the brainchild of Duncan Law at Transition Town Brixton. The latter is an initiative that looks to new ways of dealing with climate change, and energy and financial issues. In a report in the Brixton […]

Saving and investing service Moola launches

After 18 months of development, UK-based online saving and investing service Moola has launched. The firm says there are 5.4 million “mass affluent people in the UK who have no access to financial advice, but disposable income and a desire to save and invest”. It wants to tap into that market by doing the “hard […]

Nationwide bowled over by cloud software from Cutover

The UK’s Nationwide Building Society has opted for release management software from cloud technology start-up Cutover. The deal means London-based Cutover will be the “first completely cloud-based tool with no footprint within Nationwide’s infrastructure”. Cutover’s software lets teams plan, rehearse and execute events. It also offers real-time status visualisation and communications across SMS, voice and […]

Abcul perseveres with Model Credit Union project

The Association of British Credit Unions (Abcul) says it is making progress with its Model Credit Union initiative, to modernise the tech and operations of its members. Three credit unions are now live with new core and mobile banking software.

UK payments firm Helixion is liquidated

It’s not only the end of the working week but the end of the line for Edinburgh-based payments firm Helixion. The company has gone into liquidation and intellectual property (IP) firm Metis Partners has been appointed to support the marketing and sale of its assets. On Metis’ website, it says the deadline for offers has […]

Fintech funding round-up: 2 June 2017

The money’s rolling in for fintech – as this round-up follows hot on the heels from 30 May. This latest report features Zopa, RateSetter and Niyogin Fintech. The plans of peer-to-peer (P2P) lender Zopa to launch a new digital-only bank in the UK are going well as it has completed a £32 million funding round […]

Flywire acquires UK-based PACE Invoice

US payments firm Flywire has acquired PACE Invoice, a multi-currency invoicing platform provider based in London. International business law firm Addleshaw Goddard advised PACE on this transaction. With the acquisition, Flywire adds international invoicing to its cross-border payments and receivables services, enabling its business, education and healthcare clients to “more easily link invoices to cross-border […]

Implications of triggering Article 50 on London’s banking sector

Article 50, triggered just nine months after Brexit was officially announced, will give the UK exactly two years to strike a deal with the EU concerning its departure from the economic and trading bloc. What will be the impact of the referendum on the square mile? Will it cease to be the major financial hub this side of the Atlantic?

ING’s Yolt money app beta launches in UK

With an intended jolt and volt of energy, Yolt, a new money platform backed by ING, has launched its open beta for iOS and Android in the UK. The app has been tested in closed beta since October last year, and is now ready to invite more people to the platform. Yolt enables users to […]

Banking Technology June 2017 issue out now

The latest edition of our flagship magazine – Banking Technology – is out now, packed with news, analysis and insights, case studies, research and expert commentary.

Payments UK predicts debit cards to overtake cash in 2018

Rapid growth in the use of contactless cards means cash will be overtaken as Britain’s most frequently used payment method by the end of 2018, according to trade association Payments UK (soon to become UK Finance). Despite this surge, its latest forecast still does not herald the demise of cash – even in ten years’ […]

Gemalto bus-ts a move with GDPR double decker delight

Should you hear a vehicle trundling down your litter-strewn UK street don’t all rush out assuming it’s an ice cream van. Calm yourself and your desires for a gigantic calorie-drenched concoction, and instead prepare for Gemalto’s GDPR Clinic. Before you ask WTF? (i.e. what the fintech) – this is payments firm Gemalto and its double […]

Form3 teams with Apply Financial for payments validation

Form3, a cloud-based fintech firm launched last year, has partnered with payments validation company Apply Financial. The deal enhances Form3’s Payments-as-a-Service platform with “automation services to validate, enrich, and fix single and bulk payments”, Form3 says.

UK challenger CivilisedBank gets banking licence

UK digital bank CivilisedBank has received its banking licence from the Bank of England, paving the way for it to build its infrastructure and launch to customers in early 2018. As Banking Technology reported in June last year, the bank submitted its banking licence application and had planned to open for business in early 2017. […]