UK-based challenger bank CivilisedBank has decided to drop its banking license in order to focus on developing its technology.
The bank, which received its license from the Bank of England last May, hopes this will give it more time to complete the build phase and ensure an ‘optimal customer offering’ at launch. In the future, the bank will reapply for the license.
CivilisedBank received an undisclosed investment from existing backer Warwick Capital Partners earlier in the year. Following the funding, the company stated it was looking to launch its services within the first half of 2018.
CivilisedBank is a new business bank that has a local banker network and is focused on the SME market. The platform will support businesses through savings and loans, transaction banking, overdrafts, current accounts with deposits and foreign exchange.
Its Local Bankers network will incentivise one-to-one services to SMEs within their local community and support each customer with real-time information. Alongside its SME services, it will support the UK retail market with a selection of savings products.
Warwick Capital Partners co-chief investment officer and founding partner Ian Burgess said, “We are fully supportive of the management team’s decision to extend the IT build phase with the subsequent impact on its banking licence.
“With the latest technology platform, CivilisedBank will stand out as a specialist bank offering a peerless banking service to the SME market designed to enable relationship banking and taking speedy credit decisions.”
Earlier in the month, fellow UK-based challenger bank Fiinu surpassed its £500,000 crowdfunding target for its Seedrs campaign. The bank, which is in the process of getting a UK banking license, has a three-year initiative to raise £30m and hopes to accept UK customers in the coming year.
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